The A6042 and the A56 are the most dangerous roads for Manchester cyclists, according to a new study from personal injury experts Boyes Turner Claims.
The research, which analysed the latest available Department for Transport data across the last 10 years, shows that there were 16,230 casualties 1 involving Pedal Cyclists across Great Britain in 2020, accounting for 14% of all RTA casualties on GB roads2.
According to CrashMap, which uses Dft data to highlight the areas which the highest number of cycling collisions, Manchester is the fourth most dangerous city in the UK for cyclists, with 1,121 accidents including cyclists occurring in the last five years 3.
The A6042 Ring Road near Blackfriars is shown to be the location of the most fatal accidents including cyclists, with eight cyclists being killed in the last five years.
The A56 near Old Trafford is the most common location of serious accidents for cyclists in the city, with 210 serious accidents occurring on this road since 2016.
Analysis of the DfT data shows that overall, RTA casualties across the country have decreased by 45% over the past 10 years from 208,648 a year to 115,333 since 2010. However, the decrease in casualties involving cyclists has slowed at a much slower rate, down from 17,185 to 16,230 per year, representing only a 6% drop over the previous decade.
Even considering the reduced number of motorists and cyclists on roads during periods of 2020 (due to the national lockdowns), there were more cycling deaths and serious injuries last year, than in 2019. It seems that 2020 went against the downward trend shown over the previous years, with a 40% rise in cycling deaths across Great Britain between 2019 and 2020 (up from 100 to 140 deaths per year), while there was a 3% rise in serious injuries including cyclists between 2019 and 2020, (3,695 to 3,824 serious injuries per year).
Cycling casualties are also making up a much larger percentage of overall RTA casualties than they did 10 years ago. In 2010, the number of RTA casualties involving cyclists represented 8% of the total number, however this grew to 14% in 2020. The latest figures show there were record numbers of cycling deaths in 2020, with 140 deaths involving cyclists, accounting for 10% of all road fatalities and the highest single year figure across the last 10 years.
The Dft data also highlights that there were even more cycling accidents reported last year, even if an injury was not sustained by the cyclist that was classed as a casualty. According to further data requested from the DfT in October 2021, there were a total of 16,455 reported accidents involving pedal cyclists across Great Britain in 2020.4
