A Freedom of Information Request submitted to the Department for Transport (‘the DfT’) has helped to identify the most dangerous roads in Britain.
Of more than 2,000 British motorways and A-roads DfT statistics have revealed that between 2007 and 2016 the most reported road traffic incidents have occured on the A38 and the most deadly road in Britain is the A1 with more people having lost their lives during road traffic incidents during that period.
Aside from the A1, there is a worrying trend when it comes to roads running through the East Midlands with 7,167 incidents involving 13,121 vehicles and resulting in 154 deaths taking place on the M1 which passes through Derbyshire and Nottinghamshire. So too, the A537 which runs from Buxton to Knutsford, through Mansfield had 405 recorded incidents involving 496 vehicles and resulting in eight deaths; the A38 from Mansfield to Bodmin in Cornwall saw 8,698 incidents involving 13,153 vehicles and 137 deaths; and the A610 from Ambergate to Nottingham had 1,026 accidents involving 1,458 vehicles and resulting in three deaths. Finally, the A6 from Bedfordshire to Cumbria via Derbyshire saw 11,938 vehicles involved in 8,338 incidents which resulted in 152 deaths. When it comes to motorways, it is perhaps unsurprising that the M25 proved to be the most accident-prone in Britain 7,673 reported incidents; although the M6 which covers large parts of the Midlands proved to be the most deadly with no fewer than 160 deaths, despite having 331 fewer incidents than the M25 and 275 fewer than the M1.
However, it is not all doom and gloom as the DfT statistics did reveal that the number of road traffic incidents on British roads had largely decreased year-on-year with there being 25% fewer incidents in 2016 than there were in 2007. Further, there were no deaths on 35% of the roads analysed including eight of the 51 motorways in the UK with the safest motorway being the M49 between Bristol and Gloucestershire having just 11 incidents between 2007 and 2016, none if which resulted in a fatality.
The overall increase in safety on our roads is likely due to numerous factors, including the increased safety features of cars, road planning and speed restrictions. However, some would argue that the role that Driving Instructors play in educating new drivers on numerous aspects of vehicle and road safety rather than simply ‘getting them through their test’ is an important factor. Are you ready to play your part in making our roads
safer?
If you are looking for job satisfaction, flexible working hours and the opportunity to be your own boss then a career as a Driving Instructor might just be for you. To find out more about how to make this career a change a reality, head over to myfourwheels.co.uk today and take your first steps on the road to becoming a driving instructor!
