We live next to UK’s busiest motorway – we don’t care about the noise… a much harsher reality makes life unbearable
LOCALS living next to one of the UK’s busiest motorway have revealed the harsh reality that makes life unbearable.
While the thought of a swamped road with cars zooming past makes most think noise would be an issue, the Black Country residents say it’s not.
That’s because the Rowley Regis, Midlands locals say you get used to the thousands of vehicles speeding by on the M5 – but not the horror that unfolds.
One resident who only gave her first name as Debbie said she still hadn’t got used to coming across fatalities.
Scattered along the motorway are small posters from charity Samaritans.
One, which is fixed on the metal fence of a bridge has a phone number and reads: “Talk to us if things are getting to you.”
Debbie said in the 33 years she’s lived next to the M5 she’s been witness to three deaths – and her husband has helped others in need, too.
She told BirminghamLive: “That is the bad side to living here.”
The 57-year-old said the community does their best to try to prevent it, adding: “The kids come out and put up lovely little posts.
“One said ‘you are worth more than you think’ and another said ‘there are people here for you’.
“They put some really nice things.”
Speaking to the noise of the busy motorway, Debbie said she barely hears it – unless the traffic slows.
She continued: “You get used to the motorway, the only time you realize you are next to it is when it stops, when it goes quiet.
“When we moved here, we knew we were living next to a motorway.
“It has got busier here in 33 years. But when it stops, that is when you feel you are in the countryside.
“There is no pollution or dirt, there is a big drop to the motorway.”
Grandfather Brian Barrett, 61, lives nearby.
He said the motorway doesn’t bother him – he’s even got a chair in his garden to watch the cars go by.
Brian said: “It doesn’t really bother me, I have been here for 14 years, we have just got used to it.
“The cheapness of the rent was deciding factor in moving here. You don’t see the traffic, only right down at the fence.
“You can see the traffic through the trees. There’s a metal railing, it is safe for the kids.”
One man who has lived nearby almost half his life said the noise is like “second nature”.
Tej Panosar, 22, said: “I have lived here for so long, you don’t realize it is there, it is almost like second nature.
“We don’t really notice it, it is like background noise.”
If you are affected by any of the issues raised in this article, please call the Samaritans for free on 116123.