Yesterday my partner and I were returning to Nottingham via Birmingham from a weekend in Hampshire. We set off from Four Marks at about 1.30 in order to avoid the worst of the traffic. On the A34 we were delayed for about 15 minutes as a car was being recovered from off the carriageway following an incident (I refuse to describe such events as accidents). The delay was caused by the recovery vehicle being in the carriageway.

I cannot understand why the Audi was recovered whilst the demand for the A34 was at its peak. Why was the recovery not delayed until the chaos caused would be reduced? The Audi was no greater threat to motorists than the numerous trees in that location. Yet again it seems to me that the ordinary motorist is totally ignored in such situations. Within ten minutes of leaving the site of the crashed Audi we were warned of another incident on the M40. This time we were delayed by 55 minutes.

I and other road users resent bitterly having our weekends affected in this manner. As a retired economist I am aware of the concept of making the polluter pay. Surely it is time that those motorists who suffer delay due to the thoughtless actions of others are properly compensated. The compensation can be provided by insurance companies who will then pass the extra costs to those who create them. In addition, the technology exists to automatically record the number plate of the vehicles affected.