INCREASED traffic flow was always going to bring problems to the M65 because of the fact that the road was not built as a conventional three-lane motorway.

To save money, large sections were constructed with just two lanes and there have long been worries about safety as drivers, especially those who are strangers to the area, have to cope with changes in the width of the road.

Now talks have begun between the Highways Agency and Blackburn with Darwen Council about a £10million scheme to effectively create an extra lane - by allowing drivers to use the hard shoulder during peak periods on busy stretches like that between Whitebirk and Shadsworth.

Such a plan would supposedly ease the problems and obvious dangers of standing traffic queueing to get off the motorway, for example during the morning rush hour.

Similar schemes have apparently been used in Germany and Holland to reduce congestion but the RAC opposes the move on safety grounds.

The hard shoulder, they argue, is a vital safe haven and the only escape route for drivers who have punctures or break down.

Many motorists will see sense in this view.

Safety must remain paramount and a cheap, quick-fix solution to a perceived traffic problem is no solution at all if it increases the risk of accidents.