Safe number of cars using a single track country road

[Michael Smales]

What would be a suggested safe number of cars using a single track windy country road 0.7 miles long. it has blind corners and is used by farm vehicles and lorries that require escorts. it has 3 small passing places but the verges are used as oncoming vehicles have no way of passing. This puts pedestrians and horse riders in danger. if you want to view n google earth it is Southfield Lane, Tunstall, East Yorkshire. The road is currently dangerous and the caravan park is applying for extensions so I hope you can understand our concerns.

[JohnWalshUK]

My suggestion would be to get the caravan park and farm(s) owners to pay for installing 3 more passing places. Properly placed to maximise vision given there are bends in the lane. Even if this is done risks will still remain caused by delinquent drivers travelling too fast for such circumstances – however that risk exists with or without passing places where pedestrians are concerned.

I do not believe the statistic you seek exists.

[Andrew Fraser]

Your local authority planning department should have consulted your local authority’s roads department (if there is one) which should have advised on the suitability of the road for the traffic envisaged. The provision of properly deigned passing places should be a condition for planning consent (as John Walsh implies). As John also implies, there is no “safe” number of cars, although as traffic increases, there’s a tendency to stop altogether! There may be a relevant “capacity” for the single track road, but road traffic accidents are rare, random events and will occur until, perhaps, autonomous vehicles are the norm.

Do contact your local roads authority to express your concern.

[Author]

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