The A38: where people are seriously hurt
Over 2021–2025, 728 people were killed or seriously injured in 636 collisions on the A38, making it the 3rd worst numbered road in Britain by that measure.
636
serious or fatal collisions
728
people killed or seriously injured
54
collisions that took a life
#3
of 150 numbered roads
What the record shows
The A38 carries 2,992 recorded injury collisions over the period, 636 of them serious or fatal. Serious injury concentrates in Birmingham, Bristol, City of, Gloucester, with 3 further areas also recording collisions. Its fatal share, 8%, sits close to the 7% average for the numbered network. Most collisions were recorded on 30 mph sections. The worst year of the period was 2022 with 145 serious collisions, and the count is up 28% between 2021 and 2025.
Every serious and fatal collision on the A38
Blue markers are serious collisions, red crosses fatal. Click any marker for the year. Zoom in to see the specific junctions and stretches where they cluster.
Where along the route
- Birmingham98 KSI
- Bristol, City of47 KSI
- Gloucester43 KSI
- Cornwall41 KSI
- Somerset38 KSI
- Tewkesbury29 KSI
Local authority areas with the most serious collisions on this road.
The trend
Serious and fatal collisions on the A38
2025: 143 (up 30% on the year before) · peak 145 in 2022 · +27.7% across the period
Axis clipped to the data range to show year-on-year movement.
About the A38
How many accidents happen on the A38?
Police recorded 2,992 injury collisions on the A38 over 2021–2025, of which 636 were fatal or serious. Those serious collisions left 728 people killed or seriously injured, including 54 fatal collisions.
Is the A38 a dangerous road?
By volume of serious injury it ranks 3 of the 150 numbered roads we analyse, and 3 among a roads. That is a count rather than a rate: longer and busier roads accumulate more collisions, so a high ranking reflects exposure as well as risk.
Where on the A38 do collisions happen?
They concentrate in Birmingham, Bristol, City of, Gloucester. The map on this page plots every serious and fatal collision recorded on the route, so you can see the specific stretches rather than the total.
Counts include every collision the police recorded on this road number across all authority areas. They are not adjusted for traffic volume or road length, so treat them as a measure of where injury concentrates rather than a per-mile risk rating. Method. Free to reuse with attribution to this page.
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