Coroner wants new fog detector on M40 considered after man is killed in 38-vehicle crash on Valentine's Day

Darren Salter said he planned to write to Highways England after an inquest was held into the death of 64-year-old Robert Pilott, the only fatality in the 38 vehicle crash.  
Devastation: the scene on the M40 after the crash (Picture: Sky News)
Jamie Bullen23 September 2015

A coroner will ask Highways England to look at installing a fog detector on the M40 after a 64-year-old man died after a 38-vehicle smash.

Darren Salter said he would make a request to examine new safety measures after an inquest was held into the death of Robert Pilott yesterday at Oxford Coroner's Court.

Mr Pilott, from Woking, was in the front seat of a Ford Fiesta driven by his wife Susan at the time of the motorway smash and was the only fatality after he broke his neck when the car struck the central reservation barrier.

The collision took place on the northbound carriageway between junction 9 and 10, near Bicester, at about 7.45am on Valentine's Day.

Several drivers also involved in the smash told Mr Salter that a thick bank of fog had suddenly appeared in front of them.

Mr Salter said he would write to Highways England to discuss a new fog detector at the crash scene but stopped short of recommending one to be installed. The crash happened 24 years to the day after a man was killed in a crash in thick fog just 500 metres south of February's incident.

According to the Oxford Mail, he said: “I want to ask if there is a firm process for fog signs being illuminated and how this info goes in to the control room.

“Secondly, at this particular location there was no fog detector.

“I have no criticism of that because at most locations there will not be one.

“But one was in place at a different location were there was a known history and data [of fog].

“At this particular location [between junctions 9 and 10] there is no long history of problems.”

The only fog detector on the M40 is at junction 15 near Warwick.

The devices alert highway staff to fog, which enables them to trigger electronic warning signs to motorists.

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