§ 5. Mr. DalyellTo ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he will make a statement on his response to Professor James Horne of Loughborough university in relation to drivers' sleep as a cause of motorway accidents.
§ Mr. Kenneth CarlisleExperts differ on the extent to which fatigue is a cause of road accidents. We have recently received advice from the Medical Commission on Accident Prevention which we are currently considering.
§ Mr. DalyellDoes the significant number of accidents that take place between 4 and 6 o'clock in the morning and the number of accidents involving moonlighting taxi drivers justify extra research funds?
§ Mr. CarlisleThe hon. Gentleman raises an important point. Our Transport Research Laboratory is also investigating the problem to see whether we can understand it better. That is important. However, there is a commonsense answer, too—that people who feel tired 6 simply should not drive or should stop driving for a little while. That is incorporated in "The Highway Code", rule 29 of which says:
Do not drive if you feel tired or unwell.
§ Mr. Simon CoombsDoes my right hon. Friend agree that in order to ensure that motorists have an opportunity to stop their journey when they feel tired it is important that motorway service areas are available? In that context, will he take note that on the M4 there is no service area between Heston and Membury—a distance of 60 miles? That is exacerbated by the fact that many motorists join the M4 from the M25 where there are no services. This causes considerable problems. Will he consider the matter and let the House know what can be done?
§ Mr. CarlisleMy hon. Friend makes a good point. As he knows, we are studying the motorway service area system to decide whether it should be less regulated and whether a private approach would lead to more much-needed service areas. 1 agree that more service areas would make life easier for motorists who become tired.