Letter: In Brief

Sir: John Lichfield reports (11 May) that French authorities are chopping down Napoleon's roadside trees to reduce deaths from cars smashing into them. I was surprised to see no mention of the placing of guard rails along the side of the road in accident blackspots to keep the one from the other. Here in Japan guard rails are all over the place, ugly but presumably effective. Have the French authorities not considered this option, or is it simply cheaper to cut down the trees?

PIERS DOWDING

Okayama,

Japan