Unrecognised engineers
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With regard to your leader on central reserve motorway fences (CM 6-12 Jan), while high concrete barriers might stop lorries they would have disastrous effects on the cars and light vehicles which tend to be the ones that have accidents in this area. The typical central reservation fence is designed so in an accident involving a car or light vehicles it acts like a long chain, breaking off from its supports and deforming round the vehicle. This brings the vehicle to a rest with minimum risk to occupants, and importantly by not throwing the vehicle back into the traffic stream inevitably risking more accidents and unjury.
In an ideal world there should also be lorry-proof fences, to guard against the slight risk that a lorry "tries to" cross over following an accident. But there is rarely space to fit them in as well.
Rather than criticising engineers, as road users we should be praising them for achieving miracles with the limited space and funds they are given, If you want to criticise anybody why don't you criticise your readers and road users generally for failing to support new roads effectively to guarantee the land and money for the engineers to get on with the job?
Richard Turner Executive director—transport policy, Freight Transport Association,
Tunbridge Wells, Kent. El As a former Civil Engineer Richard Turner makes a sound case for the retention of the existing safety barrier design. Howeeer,CM maintains that the "ideal world" he refers to, in which llw current barrier is enhanced in order to prevent truck crossover, is not only achievable but ultimately highly desirable
Rather than criticise our readers for not supporting new roads we'll continue to criticise the Department of Transport for not putting all the money its generates from TIED and fuel tax back into the road network Ed.