Drivers are being urged ‘slow down, make space and move on’ when passing breakdowns as a new RAC image shows one of its patrol vans after it was struck by a car on the hard shoulder.

RAC patrol van on its side RTA M4 J15

Although nobody was hurt in the incident on the M4 near Swindon at 8:00pm on Thursday 23 November, the RAC highlighted that there have been two tragic motorway fatalities this year of roadside operators: one on the M25 and one on the M69.

In response the organisation is launching a campaign to encourage drivers to reduce their speed and increase the gap between their car and any vehicle and people on the hard shoulder, or indeed, in an emergency refuge area on a smart motorway.

RAC health and safety consultant Steve Robinson said: “With traffic volumes rising and several recent serious accidents involving roadside assistance patrols and breakdown contractors we need motorists to consider a new approach to how they drive past stricken vehicles, drivers and passengers, and those working in vulnerable locations.”