CONCERNED campaigners have called for urgent steps to prevent further fatal crashes following the death of two motorcyclists on the same road within a year.
A group of councillors is demanding safety measures on the A44 between Cotheridge and Broadwas following the deaths, including slashing the 60mph speed limit.
In the past five years, there have been five crashes along this section of the A44 between Broadwas and Cotheridge, including two fatalities and five serious injuries, according to data supplied this week by West Mercia Police.
Last month (Friday, April 3), the A44 was closed near Cotheridge for several hours following a crash between a van and a motorbike, which led to the death of a motorcyclist in his 20s.
A fatal crash in Cotheridge also occurred on August 7 last year after a crash involving two motorbikes and a car. A motorcyclist in his 50s died at the scene. A second motorcyclist in his 30s was taken to hospital with injuries to his leg.
LOCATION: The corner near Cotheridge on the A44 where there have been crashes (Image: Google Maps)
Richard Burrows, chair of Broadwas and Cotheridge Parish Council, county councillor Mel Fordington and district councillor Barbara Williams are pressing for urgent action while MP Harriett Baldwin has called for a review.
Mr Burrows wrote that it was ‘too little, too late’ and argued ‘Worcestershire County Council is not listening’ with ’rising fatalities’.
He added: “Local residents are living with acute safety fears. The parish council has made numerous attempts in the past few years to get the county council to address this.”
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Cllr Mel Fordington, the Conservative county councillor for the area, described progress as ‘painfully slow’ and argued ‘very little has actually changed on the ground’ with residents still waiting to be told exactly where and when these promised improvements will happen.
She said work ‘should include reduced speed limits, the greater use of safety technology, and targeted changes to the road layout’.
“Anything less fails to take the safety of residents and road users seriously enough and leaves local residents and road users open to further avoidable tragedies,” she said.
Dame Harriett Baldwin, MP for West Worcestershire said she was working with the parish council and Cllr Mel Fordington to address road safety along the A44.
She added: “I’ve been told that the county council has taken action in limited, specific ways but I think it is time for a proper review and for the authorities to listen to the concerns of local people and act to significantly improve road safety.”
A spokesperson for West Mercia Police said: “We have a speed enforcement site on the A44 at Broadwas, which is regularly attended and recent speed data collected whilst enforcement is not present shows good compliance at this location (85 per cent of vehicles are travelling at 26mph or under).”
A spokesperson for Worcestershire County Council said it had undertaken a detailed collision investigation of the A44 west of Worcester route identifying a number of highway engineering improvements with the potential to reduce future collisions.
She added: “Following the investigation, we have increased the skid resistance of the road surface along the stretch from Crown East to the west of Cotheridge and that has reduced loss of control collisions.”
