Study Shows A537 Is The Most Dangerous Road In Britain

A new map produced by the Road Safety Foundation and European Road Assessment Programme (EuroRAP) has identified the most dangerous highways in Britain.

The report suggested the A537, which stretches from Cheshire to Derbyshire, is the biggest accident blackspot.

There were 44 fatal crashes on this road between 2007 and 2011, with five per cent of these involving pedestrians or cyclists.

According to the study, the A5012 in Derbyshire is also a notoriously hazardous road, while the A682 in Lancashire has been the scene of a number of fatal collisions in recent years.

The Road Safety Foundation claimed the UK government has recognised the fact Britain is falling behind other nations in terms of road safety and is hoping to rectify the situation by investing £50 billion into the nation's infrastructure.

In a statement, the organisation said roads are now rated worldwide, which gives governments and local authorities a far better idea of where their resources should be targeted.

"Single carriageway roads are now seven times more risky than motorways," the Road Safety Foundation revealed.

"As the flowers by the roadside attest, the main crash type causing death is running off the road. The main crash type causing serious injury are brutal junction impacts."

It added that Britain could benefit from adopting a similar approach to the Netherlands and New Zealand, where national road managers have been given clear safety targets that must be met by 2020.

The report indicated that road safety is most improved in the east of England, while the East Midlands is generally the most dangerous region.

One in eight non-primary A roads in the East Midlands are rated as "high risk", whereas the same can be said of just one in 44 roads in the east of England.

The East Midlands also has the smallest proportion of "safe motorways" (24 per cent) and the risk rate on its single carriageways is one-third higher than any other part of the country

Expert Opinion

Highlighting the most dangerous roads in our country is a welcome step forward in drawing attention to improving road safety. Most people will be able to name the so-called ‘blackspots’ in their region, probably based on word of mouth, but what this map does is highlight the truly most dangerous roads across Britain. <br/> <br/>Aside from driving safely, there is not much that road users can do, we have get from A to B and use these roads, but highways authorities and policy makers need to sit up and take note of these key routes in particular. <br/> <br/>“Many of the motor accident cases I have seen, including in the East Midlands where I work, have occurred on single carriageways so it is no surprise they have been identified as the most notorious. Hopefully this particular study will to help improve our knowledge of the roads and encourage policy makers to take further measures to reduce the risk of fatal and serious accidents.” <br/> Neil Whiteley - Partner