Drivers “could have been killed” after rocks thrown at cars from A3 bridge
Drivers “could have been killed” after rocks were thrown at cars from a pedestrian bridge over the A3 in Petersfield last week.
Police are investigating after windows were left smashed when cars were suddenly hit by the “scary” missiles during the first week of the school holidays.
Two of the incidents took place last Thursday evening (24 July). National Highways said a man called Sławosz was travelling from Camberley to Fareham when he drove under the bridge at around 5.20pm.
He said: “There was a very loud, very scary bang. I pulled up onto the grass verge and called the police. There was glass everywhere. Police said to stay with the vehicle, and they would come and assist. I looked around and saw two teenagers on the bridge; they ran away.
“I can’t imagine for one moment that the teenagers involved were trying to kill anyone but that could easily have been the consequences of their actions.”
He added: “There’s a fine line between wrong and right, and there’s a difference between having fun and killing someone. That kind of ‘entertainment’ could kill someone.”
Petersfield resident Dan French’s son Jake, who’s in his 20s, suffered a similar devastating experience when travelling back from work the same day. “The fright my son was put through plus the danger of having to stop on a live carriageway is unacceptable,” said Dan.
“As a parent, I would urge others to take an interest in what their children are doing and discourage this kind of behaviour. The potential consequences don’t bear thinking about.”
He added: “My son relies on his car to get to work in Chessington. He’s out of pocket as unable to commute whilst it’s awaiting repair, and he’s having to pay £150 excess towards the claim for the windscreen.”
England’s motorways and major A-roads are some of the safest in the world and National Highways’ ambition remains that no-one should be harmed while travelling or working on them.
Colin Evans, Regional Safety Programme Manager for National Highways in the Southeast, said: "Road safety is a shared responsibility and the implications of throwing any object from a bridge onto the carriageway could have catastrophic consequences. It's extremely lucky that no-one has been harmed because of these mindless acts.”
Chief Inspector Alex Charge, District Commander for East Hants and Havant, said: “We are aware of several reports of young people throwing rocks at cars from bridges over the A3 in Petersfield.
“This is extremely dangerous and puts motorists at serious risk of harm. Fortunately, no one has been injured, but vehicles have been damaged, and the community is rightly concerned about this.
“We encourage parents to speak to their children about the very real and significant consequences of engaging in this type of behaviour.
“Our officers will be paying particular attention to this area whilst on patrol. Anyone with information about this type of behaviour, or anyone involved, should report this to the police.”
Police enquiries remain ongoing. Anyone with any information about these incidents or any other similar incident should contact Hampshire Police quoting reference: 44250332094.