Drivers will make an estimated 19.6m separate trips by car to see friends and family this week, with 40% of all getaway journeys crammed into just two days, according to new predictions by the RAC and INRIX. Leisure traffic is expected to build steadily through the course of the week, peaking on both ‘frantic’ Friday 23rd and Saturday 24th December with a predicted 7.9m getaways over the two … [Read more...]
Education: Road Safety
Winter challenges before you drive
The late Autumn and Winter months bring with them a whole host of challenges for drivers. There’s long, dark nights to contend with, alongside wet, windy and potentially icy conditions that make concentration behind the wheel even more important. But there’s another factor too: how dirty your car can get from the dirt kicked up by the road and other cars. Not only can this dirt damage … [Read more...]
Tradelines 14 December
BBC Wales meteorologist Derek Brockway is showing his true grit this winter after Cardiff Council named a new snow clearing vehicle after him. The Derek Brr-ockway gritter has gone into service with encouragement from the Barry-born broadcaster, who said, "I've always wanted to be a weatherman but I never thought I'd have a gritter named after me, this is really special. I'm very honoured." A … [Read more...]
Worst ever winter breakdowns, said RAC
The RAC yesterday coped with over 12,000 breakdown calls in what it said was the ‘worst-ever winter breakdown cocktail’. RAC Breakdown spokesperson Rod Dennis said, “Yesterday was officially our busiest day for breakdowns on record, with around 12,000 drivers needing help, the equivalent of eight every minute of the day. Even our busiest day during the infamous Beast from the East in 2018 didn’t … [Read more...]
Newslines 13 December
McLaren has sold part of its heritage collection to its main shareholder to raise money for its Artura project. The manufacturer went in search of the money after discovering that ‘certain technical upgrades’ to the hybrid supercar were needed so the Bahrain-based sovereign wealth fund Mumtalakat Holding Co – which owns almost 60 per cent of McLaren – agreed to stump up £100m, says Bloomberg UK … [Read more...]
Newslines 12 December
Our data shows that without advertising the fact Asda has taken an average of 4.5p off the cost of litre of unleaded across its 320 sites and around 5.5p off diesel, said RAC fuel spokesman Simon Williams. “While we’re pleased one major supermarket retailer has finally started heeding our calls to pass on the enormous drop in the wholesale prices of both fuels, the fact these price cuts have been … [Read more...]
West is best to beat drink driving stigma
Welsh drivers are among the best behaved behind the wheel and less likely to drink and drive than risk takers in London, according to a survey by IAMRoadsmart. The areas of the country where revellers could be most likely to indulge in the wrong kind of Christmas spirit this festive season, by drink-driving, have been revealed by IAM RoadSmart. The UK’s leading independent road safety charity … [Read more...]
What is autonomous or not
Thatcham Research has revealed further insights from its Trust in Automation study - which polled 2,000 motorists in the US and 2,000 in the UK – and found a significant disconnect between attitudes and behaviours on either side of the Atlantic. American drivers are more likely to a see a benefit to self-driving or autonomous technology than British drivers: 81% versus 73% respectively. However, … [Read more...]
Drivers steer clear of smart motorways’ concept
Half of drivers say they frequently or occasionally avoid using lane one on ‘all lane running’ smart motorways. It's a revelation that completely undermines the very reason so many hard shoulders have been permanently turned into running lanes: to increase road capacity. RAC research with 1,904 drivers on ‘all lane running’ smart motorways, found a fifth (21%) claimed to have frequently steered … [Read more...]
Drowsiness as dangerous as drunk and drugged drivers
It is common knowledge that drunk, drugged, or distracted drivers pose a danger to themselves and others on the road. But tired motorists, who tend to be overlooked when thinking about unsafe driving, are just as perilous. Indeed, collisions caused by drowsy drivers are 50% more likely to result in death or serious injuries. This is because, if dozing, the person at the wheel doesn’t have the … [Read more...]