The variety of reviews of automobiles being pushed the flawed means on England’s motorways rose by 13% in a yr, an investigation has discovered.
Motoring teams branded the rise “frightening” and known as for technological interventions to be thought of.
National Highways figures present 872 incidents involving “oncoming vehicles” had been reported within the yr to 19 June.
That is up from 770 throughout the earlier 12 months, and represents a median of 16 per week.
The information, launched in response to a Freedom of Information request, pertains to unconfirmed reviews of wrong-way driving obtained by National Highways’ regional operations centres.
One of probably the most severe incidents left three males useless when a 15-year-old boy drove a stolen van the flawed means down the M606 close to Bradford and crashed right into a taxi on in June 2022.
Gloucestershire Constabulary not too long ago launched footage of a four-vehicle smash attributable to a drunk lady driving the flawed means on the M5 close to Tewkesbury for greater than two miles final October.
Sheena Hague, National Highways director of highway security, mentioned: “Safety is our top priority and our traffic officers are called out to hundreds of thousands of incidents each year, including collisions, breakdowns and debris.
“Thankfully the variety of reviews of oncoming automobiles is low, nonetheless we deal with them significantly by setting indicators to warn and inform drivers for each report of a automobile driving the flawed means on our motorways.
“We design our motorways to be as intuitive as possible to reduce the likelihood of anyone driving the wrong way.”
Drivers who see a automobile travelling within the flawed path are urged to contact 999 whether it is protected to take action or use a motorway SOS telephone to alert the authorities.
Speed limits are often lower to 20mph on motorway stretches the place a automobile being pushed in direction of different visitors is reported.
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Edmund King, president of the AA, mentioned: “The increase in the number of vehicles being driven in the wrong direction on motorways is frightening and can be fatal.
Mr King urged motorists to “use frequent sense” and not “over-rely” on the sat nav.
Jo Shiner, the National Police Chiefs’ Council lead for roads policing, said: “It’s regarding to see the variety of incidents rising and I echo National Highways’ feedback in that security is our high precedence.
“It’s so important to be aware and alert when driving.
“Please hold any distractions to a minimal and focus on the indicators and knowledge supplied on your security.”
Source: information.sky.com”