Valley highway crash hotspot
New data has revealed the most dangerous road in Calderdale with 160 accidents causing casualties.
BRITAIN’S 100 worst road accident hotspots have more than 10 times as many serious crashes as the national average, new analysis shows.
Government data on crashes which cause injury or death show Yorkshire and the Humber is the third worst region in the country with more than 60,000 crashes causing accidents between 2014 and 2018.
While the number of accidents causing death or injury has fallen by a sixth in the past five years, road safety charity Brake has said more should be done to catch and punish dangerous drivers.
The Department for Transport (DfT) said it is making vital improvements to some of the country’s most dangerous stretches of road.
The most dangerous roads in Calderdale within that period of time were the A646 with 160 accidents causing casualties, followed by the M62 with 145 on its stretch, and then A629 with 134.
The M606 through Kirklees is among Britain’s worst 10 stretches of motorway for accidents causing injury or death per mile with 529 accidents.
Elsewhere in the district the most dangerous road is the A62 with 340 accidents, followed by the M62 with 238, and the A638 with 185.
In the Harrogate area the most dangerous roads are the A61 with 266 accidents, the A1 or A1M with 141, and the B6265 with 101.
In Scarborough the most dangerous roads are the A171 with 165 accidents, the A165 with 151, and the A64 or A64M with 74.
In Wakefield the most dangerous roads are the A61 with 146 accidents, the A645 with 142, and the A642 with 125.
Serious crashes are more likely to happen on a Friday and in the hour between 5pm and 6pm.
Drivers are more likely to be male and be aged between 26 and 35.
The DfT said allocation of crime-fighting resources is a matter for chief constables, in conjunction with police and crime commissioners.
The department said that busier roads will have a higher number of accidents but that “vital improvements” were being made to the road networks.
A spokesperson said: “We are committed to improving road safety across the country, and the Safer Roads Fund will provide vital improvements to the 50 most dangerous stretches of road in England.
“In addition, we launched a Road Safety Action Plan last year which set out more than 70 measures to reduce the number of people killed and injured on our roads.”
ONLINE: For more local news visit www.halifaxcourier.co.uk