10 most dangerous roads in the UK identified

The 10 most dangerous UK roads have been revealed in an annual report by a UK road safety charity.

Topping the list is the A285 between Chichester and Petworth, according to the Road Safety Foundation (RSF). Fatal and serious crashes increased by 16 per cent on this 12-mile stretch over a five year period from 2007 and 2012, making it Britain’s most dangerous road.

The charity acknowledged the difficulties facing the A285. It said a “more reaching intervention” is required if the local government is to improve the situation, adding that previous measures had been inadequate.

The second most hazardous road on the list is a 10-mile stretch of the A809 in Glasgow. Third place went to another Scottish road, the eight-mile section of the A937 at Montrose, Angus.

Back in England, other dangerous roads include a 9.7-mile part of the A18 between Laceby and Ludborough in Lincolnshire, a 5.6-mile section of the A6 in Lancaster and a 6.4-mile portion of the A61 in the West Yorkshire city of Wakefield.

The report was not all doom and gloom. It discovered councils who scheduled cost efficient safety measures in conjunction with standard road maintenance managed to reduce fatal and serous crashes by an impressive 80 per cent on 15 stretches of roads.

Even more impressive is the fact that these enormous reductions were worth a staggering £400 million to the economy. Motorways, meanwhile, witnessed a 20 per cent decrease in fatal and serious crashes.

Some other negative findings of the report are worth a mention. It is now understood that motorcyclists make up only one per cent of traffic but 21 per cent of fatal crashes. Also the risk to road users is seven times greater on single-carriage A roads than motorways.

Road Safety Foundation (RSF) compiled the results as part of a report named ‘How Safe Are You On Britain’s Roads?’.

RSF chairman Lord Whitty said: “We can no longer accept sudden, violent road death as such a significant cause of premature loss of life. The Government must design, plan and legislate to put safety on roads on the same footing as safety in the air, sea or on rail.”

The Top 10 is as follows:

1. A285 between Chichester and Petworth 
2. A809 Glasgow to A811 
3. A397 Montrsoe to A90 (Laurencekirk) 
4. A18 Laceby to Ludborough 
5. A6 M6 J33 to Lancaster 
6. A61 Wakefield to M1 J44 
7. A36 A3090 to Totton 
8. A589 Full route around lancaster 
9. A643 Brighthouse to Morley 
10. A4300 Full route through Kettering