You risk a £5,000 fine and a driving ban for stopping on the side of the motorway to go to the toilet
MILLIONS of British drivers risk being hit with a hefty fine for stopping on the side of a motorway to go to the toilet.
Hard shoulders are used as a refuge for broken-down vehicles so they don’t interfere with the flow of traffic, as well as a lane for emergency vehicles to reach serious accidents.
Even when you need to go to the toilet or make a call, you should always try and pull over off to a safer location such as a junction or nearby service station.
Under rule 270 of the Highway Code, you should only stop on a hard shoulder in an emergency or when told to do by police or traffic officers in uniform.
Using the hard shoulder for any other reason is illegal and can see you hit with a £100 fine and three points on your licence.
And if you cause an accident, you could be charged with careless driving which carries a £5,000 fine, up to nine penalty points and a lengthy driving ban.
The do's and don'ts for using the hard shoulder
DO
- Pull over safely on the hard shoulder in an emergency, such as a breakdown or medical episode
- Turn on hazard warning lights and side lights to alert other drivers
- Use left-hand doors if you need to exit the vehicle
- Keep your children and pets inside the car
- Proceed with extreme caution if you need to use the emergency phone on the hard shoulder
DON’T
- Don’t use the hard shoulder to get ahead of traffic and skip queues
- Don’t stop on the hard shoulder to go to the toilet or use your mobile
- Don’t pull over if passengers have travel sickness or you need to rest
A recent study by Select Car Leasing revealed one in 10 admitted to pulling over on a motorway to go to the toilet.
Shockingly, around 20 per cent of Londoners had stopped to relieve themselves on a motorway when driving.
Recent figures by Highways England reveal over 100 people are killed or seriously injured on the hard shoulder every year.
James O’Malley, company director of Select Car Leasing, said: “Motorway hard shoulders are not a safe place to be, with countless accidents occurring there each year, many of them proving fatal.
“By pulling onto the hard shoulder when it’s not an emergency, for something like going to the toilet, you’re putting yourself and other road users in grave danger.
latest motors news
“The regulations are in place to try and limit the risk and you ignore them at your peril.
“No matter how desperate you are, or how loudly the kids are screaming about needing a wee, stay on the motorway and aim for the nearest services instead.”
New smart motorways are being axed until a safety review has been completed, following the deaths of 38 people in the past five years.