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http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/wilt ... 741791.stm
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Teenager in motorway hit-and-run
A teenage pedestrian has suffered serious injuries in a hit-and-run crash on the M4 motorway.

The 14-year-old, who had earlier been reported missing, was struck as she walked along the side of the M4 in Wiltshire on Tuesday night.

Several drivers had reported seeing someone walking east on the westbound carriageway at Swindon at 2200 BST.

Half an hour later police were called after the girl was hit by a lorry or van which failed to stop at the scene.

The teenager was taken to the Great Western Hospital in Swindon with injuries to her face, arm and leg.

Anyone with information is asked to contact Wiltshire Police.
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Saw this first on the local news pages on Ceefax, where it also said that drivers had reported the pedestrian half an hour before she was hit. Is it just me or does it seem like Wilts police took a long time in getting there? Maybe something else was going on at the same time, or maybe they'd already started looking before she was run over, and being dark they just hadn't found her yet. I certainly hope so, as it seems like a very dangerous situation, and not just for the pedestrian. I'm also wondering if there were any warnings to drivers. Does that part of the M4 have the newer matrix signs that hang over L1 or just the weeny old ones in the central reservation?

[sarcastic mode on] And incidentally, with the Wilts scamera mob patrolling the M4 shouldn't this sort of thing be impossible now? Or did the lorry only hit one third of her? [/sarcastic mode] Probably get used in next years figures to justify more talivan operations.

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But what on earth possessed her to head for the motorway? At 14 - surely she knows these are out of bounds to pedestrians?

Would appear the lass flounced out in a tantrum.

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No idea mate. You'd certainly think someone of 14 would work out that it's a bad idea, and possibly know it's illegal too. Can't find anything about anywhere other than that Beeb article at the moment, so who knows how and why she ended up there. Tragic whatever the circumstances.

Mainly though, I'm keen to find out about the police response time. Half an hour seems like a long time, but I can imagine it might be hard to find someone by the side of a motorway at night. If she didn't want to be found for some reason I guess there'd be bushes to hide in when the blue lights appeared, but that's all speculation. But I can't help feeling that this was preventable. Drivers had already reported it, so how hard could it be to get a car or two to run up and down between junctions with the blue lights going and signalling everyone to use L2 and 3 for a bit? What if she'd been hit by a car? Not much better for her, but at motorway speeds possibly not too hot for the occupants either. What if a vehicle swerved to avoid her and took someone else off the road? I'd hope Wilts police were treating it with some urgency and that they were already about. But like I keep saying... half an hour!

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Make everything as simple as possible, but not simpler - Einstein

Maybe she was told at school that the road now has a Magic Safety Camera, therefore it doesn't matter what anyone does from now all will be well.

You would be suprised.

I lived in a small village and the school was in the next village. At the time we had a lot of teachers and bus driver strikes. Often we would be turfed out of school with no bus either we were kicked out early or the bus just wasn't running.

The shortest route between the two villages was (and still is) the railway line, and for added convenience it ran within a few hundred yards of the school. So a lot of kids, at least a couple of who's fathers worked on the railway, would walk home along the railway line.

I have also quite often seen people using the M606 and M621 motorways on foot late at night with no breakdown in sight.

There is no legislating against stupidity.

I hope they don't even THINK about using this incident as justification for more cameras.

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