IAM speaks out against cable barriers
IAM campaigns to help motorcyclists by removing 'cheese cutter' barriers
Press Release
The road safety charity IAM Roadsmart has started a campaign to have cable barriers removed from the last stretches of UK roads where they are still in use – 143 miles of road still have them in fact. Their nickname is 'cheese cutters' and they are very dangerous for motorcyclists.
The IAM would like to see them completely removed by the end of the decade as they are such bad news for motorcyclists who might be involved in an accident and end up colliding with them.
The IAM claim that 76 per cent of fatal or serious accidents are caused by motorcyclists hitting these barriers, as the jagged edges of these cable barriers are much more dangerous for motorcyclists than standard crash barriers.
The removal of cable barriers would bring the UK into line with Norway which has already removed and banned them, out of concern for motorcyclists. They are also being phased out in Northern Ireland.
Replacing them with solid crash barriers would be of great benefit to motorcyclists in the event of a crash, and would go some way towards screening off the glare from the headlights of oncoming traffic as well, which would be beneficial for all road users. Plus the fact that there are not many miles of cable barriers left in the UK, so it would be relatively easy to eliminate them altogether and forever.
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