We recently reported that the Ministry of Infrastructure is working on regulations that would introduce a mandatory zipper merge and the creation of an emergency corridor. However, it turns out that the changes the ministry intends to introduce are, according to the initiators of the “Emergency Corridor – Think” campaign, including volunteer firefighters from Czernej (Nowogrodziec municipality), quite simply insufficient.

As we read on the “Emergency Corridor...” campaign website:

So much work, so much effort, and it seems that everything will come to nothing. The draft regulations governing the so-called emergency corridor are expected to include a provision stating that the police will be required to show drivers how to leave a congested motorway. To this end, the Ministry of the Interior prepared four options for clearing the motorway:

  • The first is opening technical gates—this may be reasonable, but it is practical only for passenger cars.
  • The second, idiotic option is driving against the flow through the emergency corridor. I can already imagine the chaos when every driver starts doing it independently and however they please. I do not think there will suddenly be enough police on the motorway to control it.
  • The third option is blocking motorway exits and allowing the motorway to be left via those entrances. Personally, I do not know what the author means. It also involves removing the barriers between motorway lanes and, in the event of an accident, temporarily directing traffic onto the opposite carriageway. Somehow, I cannot see it!!
  • The fourth, and probably the most sensible, option is installing information signs that, in the event of an accident, would indicate the possibility of a detour.

It seems that despite our efforts, the actions of the legislative authorities are heading in the wrong direction. It is sad, but unfortunately true.

Firefighters appeal:

[…] This is the fourth year of our hard, fruitless work. Hence our request. Share our posts, videos and articles. Let our materials reach as many recipients as possible. No, we do not have advertising revenue arranged, no one pays us; we do everything as a community. But only thanks to you can we change something, so that our roads are safe. Remember that the best time to change something in the Road Traffic Act is before the elections. After the elections, no one will listen to us again for several years.
Emergency Corridor

What do you think? We invite you to join the discussion.