Cheshire East's road death danger

Cheshire East is one of the most dangerous places in Britain for road accidents causing serious injury or death.

Recent figures reveal 244 deaths and serious injuries annually on Cheshire East roads – much higher than the England average.

Figures are revealed in the wake of two fatal road accidents on roads near Audlem (albeit one was just across the border in Shropshire) where a 19-year-old and a 65-year-old recently lost their lives.

The grim road death statistics are outlined in the first annual report by Cheshire East's Director of Public Health Dr Heather Grimbaldeston.

In the period 2010-2012, a total of 732 people were killed or seriously injured on Cheshire East roads.

In 2011 alone there were 1,759 road traffic collisions in Cheshire East resulting in 12 deaths, 201 severe casualties and 846 slight casualties.

Of those who were fatally and seriously injured, 21 (9%) were under the age of 16 whilst 51 (21%) were aged 16-25.

Males made up 69% of those killed or seriously injured and young motorcyclists were frequently involved in the collisions.

Dr Grimbaldeston points out that Cheshire East has more than 1,770 miles of roads, considerably higher than the UK average with a large network of main 'A' roads, many of which are rural roads.

The number of vehicle miles travelled in Cheshire East is also higher than the British average for a local authority, with a particularly high usage by heavy goods vehicles (HGVs) but also higher than average usage by cars, taxis and light goods vehicles.

Her report says that although Cheshire East has a high number of fatal and serious road traffic accidents for its number of residents, they are comparatively low in relation to the size of the road network.

Dr Grimbaldeston's report says that the costs of any accident prevention initiatives should be measured against the overall costs of attending and dealing with road accidents.

She said: "The cost of managing a fatal motorway crash is in excess of £2 million, whilst managing a serious crash on an A-road costs £200,000; this does not include the intangible costs borne by the individual, family, businesses and private owners."

Cheshire East currently has a multi-agency road safety initiative in place with input from Cheshire East Council, Cheshire Fire and Rescue, Cheshire Police and other agencies.

Dr Grimbaldeston added: "The evidence base tells us that investing in the development of a safe road infrastructure is expensive, but cost effective, and successful in accident avoidance."

"Local priority needs to be given to promote multi-agency working and continue the successful implementation of the 'Cheshire East Multi Agency Road Safety Plan for 2013-2014'"

In April 2013 the responsibility for Public Health was transferred from the NHS to local authorities and the road accident figures form part of the first annual report to Cheshire East.

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