Ilminster by-pass re-opens after fatal collision (From Somerset County Gazette)

Sorry to hear about the loss. But this road, is just a disaster waiting to happen. Only way to stop these incidents, put a central reservation down the middle. Should never of been built the way it was. Cost cutting at its best. I know its NO excuse, for the way some people drive.

I totally agree why does it take so long and so many fatalaties before it is made safer. A central reservation would be the safest option.

PS, Over 30 years ago, I said the A303 should be Dual Carriageway all the way from London to Penzance at least, so now, I don't expect it will happen in my lifetime.

Its sad to hear again about losses on that road yet again i live in Ilminster
and never use that stretch of road
i go through the villages due to the horror stories of death and crashes

Very sad. Should've been dual carriageway when it was first built. 3 Carriageway roads were supposedly done away with some years ago, yet for some reason we are still cursed with one which has been modified into a kamikaze alley, especially when the drivers of certain breeds of car can't bear to have someone in front of them when entering a single carriageway stretch, as is shown by many of the other incidents along the 303 occurring in the same old areas, i.e. ends of dual carriageways.

Even though the Ilminster Bypass was opened 24 years ago, we should still be able to hunt down the fool who said "We can save 20 tons of concrete if we make it single carriageway each way."

We should also hunt down and publicly ridicule the next fool who decided it would be a good idea to modify it to be alternating 2-lane/1-lane then 1-lane/2-lane.

Of course the correct design and width should have been done 24 years ago, but it isn't too late to make the Ilminster Bypass two yards wider and dual it in both directions along its entire length.

You may even find that road users get home both quicker and safer.

Apparently speed cameras solve all accidents so we need loads of them also help the government curb public borrowing so its win-win.

Perhaps we should have them at 50M intervals - then there would be no excuse

No one knows what caused this crash yet, so let's not speculate. But regarding the bad driving on this road I would make two points
1. Average speed cameras would stop a lot of the bad driving with people trying to gain a few extra seconds before two lanes merge to one. I find that driving at a steady 50mph on this section means you keep moving, while all the speed merchants bunch up then brake sharply, causing bunching and those jams with no apparent cause - pointless.
Secondly, if fuel prices are so high that people can't afford to drive why is it that so many drivers travel at 70mph plus on this road, including many business vans? I suspect many of the drivers aren't paying the fuel bill. That begs the question why businesses aren't insisting their drivers obey speed limits. If a driver of a business vehicle is 'at work' and driving at excessive speed and causes a fatality, then the business could face a corporate manslaughter charge. Food for thought!

jamking wrote:
No one knows what caused this crash yet, so let's not speculate. But regarding the bad driving on this road I would make two points 1. Average speed cameras would stop a lot of the bad driving with people trying to gain a few extra seconds before two lanes merge to one. I find that driving at a steady 50mph on this section means you keep moving, while all the speed merchants bunch up then brake sharply, causing bunching and those jams with no apparent cause - pointless. Secondly, if fuel prices are so high that people can't afford to drive why is it that so many drivers travel at 70mph plus on this road, including many business vans? I suspect many of the drivers aren't paying the fuel bill. That begs the question why businesses aren't insisting their drivers obey speed limits. If a driver of a business vehicle is 'at work' and driving at excessive speed and causes a fatality, then the business could face a corporate manslaughter charge. Food for thought!

Few reasons is that people are under pressure in the private sector to perform and make money or lose their job. Its not the public sector were they just cut services and every still gets a gold plated pension but doesnt have to provide anything like the service it should. If the private sector doesnt deliver for its clients they dont get the money.

Companies have sprung up to manage the risk of fleet drivers and so many corperation have shifted their liablity to these. They check your licence and give you leaflets in my experience they dont do anything to educate you.

The government tax people with expensed company vehicles so hard and the scheme is not subject montored milleage or fuel usage. So it you taxed £200 quid a month for just traveling to do your job and your employer pays your fuel what insentive is there for people to drive ecomically.

Speed is not a killer. The germans have proved, they dont get the serious accidents on autobahns even when people drive faster. Two reasons germans take their cars conditions more seriously like having at least 4 mm of tred on your tyres is normall there were as most people here have more like 2mm. Second when I did 90-100 plus i didnt have a fleet audi or range rover sport following me a foot of my bumper because german drivers are better educated in safe drive techniques. The amount of people who follow to close at speed in this country is criminal yet if they kill someone they get 9 months in a holiday camp. Police only seem interested in speeding not bad driving these days.

It is so sad this has happened yet again. I started to learn to drive in 1992. My driving instructor made me drive this stretch of road on my third lesson, which he also informed when the piece of road emerged that claimed his sons life a few years prior. A decade on and no change. Ever since I've avoided it where ever possible and drove through Staple Fitzpaine and joined the A30 and A303, much safer I've found.

oh dear - lets face it, we all like the adrenaline rush and to drive by the seat of our pants on that road but not everyone makes it. i spose they could make it four lane, but then that would be boring.

Mi_Coc wrote:

jamking wrote:
No one knows what caused this crash yet, so let's not speculate. But regarding the bad driving on this road I would make two points 1. Average speed cameras would stop a lot of the bad driving with people trying to gain a few extra seconds before two lanes merge to one. I find that driving at a steady 50mph on this section means you keep moving, while all the speed merchants bunch up then brake sharply, causing bunching and those jams with no apparent cause - pointless. Secondly, if fuel prices are so high that people can't afford to drive why is it that so many drivers travel at 70mph plus on this road, including many business vans? I suspect many of the drivers aren't paying the fuel bill. That begs the question why businesses aren't insisting their drivers obey speed limits. If a driver of a business vehicle is 'at work' and driving at excessive speed and causes a fatality, then the business could face a corporate manslaughter charge. Food for thought!

Few reasons is that people are under pressure in the private sector to perform and make money or lose their job. Its not the public sector were they just cut services and every still gets a gold plated pension but doesnt have to provide anything like the service it should. If the private sector doesnt deliver for its clients they dont get the money.

Companies have sprung up to manage the risk of fleet drivers and so many corperation have shifted their liablity to these. They check your licence and give you leaflets in my experience they dont do anything to educate you.

The government tax people with expensed company vehicles so hard and the scheme is not subject montored milleage or fuel usage. So it you taxed £200 quid a month for just traveling to do your job and your employer pays your fuel what insentive is there for people to drive ecomically.

Speed is not a killer. The germans have proved, they dont get the serious accidents on autobahns even when people drive faster. Two reasons germans take their cars conditions more seriously like having at least 4 mm of tred on your tyres is normall there were as most people here have more like 2mm. Second when I did 90-100 plus i didnt have a fleet audi or range rover sport following me a foot of my bumper because german drivers are better educated in safe drive techniques. The amount of people who follow to close at speed in this country is criminal yet if they kill someone they get 9 months in a holiday camp. Police only seem interested in speeding not bad driving these days.

Wrong I'm afraid. Every 1mph reduction in speed reduces accidents by 5%. Speed doesn't necessarily cause the accidents, but it means less time to take corrective action and makes the consequences worse.

Cant seem to be able to comment on the updated version of this, where the couple have been named. But I see the local MP has jumped on the band wagon“I will ask the Highways Agency for a report to see how dangerous this part of the A303 is compared with the dualled stretches of the road.” Seems he does not drive this, as its not dualled, just a cheap way of getting car to overtake.

My condolences to those who have lost their lives and those who have lost loved ones.

Obviously we do not know the cause of the crash but I hope it wasn't due to someone ignoring the double white lines that were added some years ago.

I think this addition did help but you still have idiots who ignore it and idiots who try to overtake at the last minute before the road tapers back to single lane.

Unfortunately its usually not the idiots who end up loosing their lives but the innocent parties.

Until be know (if we ever know) what caused this collision we will not be able to say for sure whether it was the lack of dual carriageway to blame, try error, vehicle failure etc

Even if it were dualled there would still be occasions when someone miss judges pulling out to overtake etc so there will never be a complete fix