Driver behaviour is partly to blame for M50 standstills

Sir, – After spending more time on the M50 recently, I’ve experienced (like many other motorists) the frustrating and inefficient rush-hour congestion. These dragged commutes made me think about how a motorway, which forbids speeds below 50km/h, can have traffic at a standstill everyday. I think part of the problem is with the drivers themselves.

On many Irish dual carriageways and motorways, there are variable speed limits that try to regulate traffic flow. During high-congestion, these speed limits are reduced, preventing high-speed traffic from encountering slow-moving congestion and having to harshly brake to not have an accident.

This sounds very logical, but in reality, few motorists actually adhere to this, opting to drive at 100km/h towards standstill traffic, initiating a wave of stop-start traffic when they brake suddenly. It has been proven through various demonstrations that sudden braking in high-volume traffic is a huge cause of congestion.

I believe that the National Transport Authority should begin an advertising campaign to inform the public about these speed limits and explain how they manage traffic. Once people understand the reasons behind them, only then will they follow them. – Yours, etc,