Dozens of drivers have died on roads without hard shoulders over last six years – now campaigners will ask a high court judge to scrap the network once and for all. By Colin Drury
erek Jacobs passed his driving test when was 17 and, in the 66 years since, had never been involved in a major accident.
He taught his wife and his two sons to drive, and there was talk he would do the same for his grandchildren.
At the age of 83 and, still working part time as an engineer, he continued to travel around the country in his much-loved Volkswagen Crafter van. He was healthy, active and retained the sharp practical intelligence he was known throughout his life for.
Then on Friday 22 March, 2019, he suffered a suspected tyre burst on a smart motorway.
Such was his competence as a driver that Mr Jacobs did everything right in a suddenly horrific situation. He did not jam on the brake, sending the vehicle into a tailspin; he did not over-steer causing a potential flip. He kept control of the van as it lost speed, pulling it over as far as he could onto the carriageway’s left-hand side. When he came to a halt, he exited from the passenger door and was, it seems, about to climb over the highway’s barrier as government advice dictates.
full article here