Campaigners are calling for police and other authorities to clamp down on speeding on the A4 running through Berkshire villages after 16 crashes have been recorded in recent years.
Police data shows 16 crashes have been recorded between 2018 and 2021 on the A4 running through Charvil and Hare Hatch.
A total of 21 people have been injured in these crashes. Of those three were children, and a cyclist was involved in six of the crashes.
One of the crashes involved a pedestrian, and four of them labelled serious, meaning at least one person was seriously injured.
In the worst case, on December 5, 2017, Gladys Goodwin and PC James Dixon died in a crash between PC Dixon’s police motorbike and a car being driven by Agne Jasulaitiene, who was cleared of two counts of causing death by careless driving.
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The information comes from Thames Valley and Hampshire Police collision data website.
Previously, a campaigner from the A4 Action group said the road is being treated “like an F1 race track.”
It is up to Thames Valley Police to enforce speed limits and prosecute speeding drivers.
A spokesperson for the force said that established cameras on the A4 in the area have been re-established after temporarily being out of action.
The spokesperson said: “Fixed safety cameras across Thames Valley could potentially be operational at any time.
“The fixed camera locations are individually assessed taking into consideration site environment and casualty and collision data.
“Thames Valley Police operates an evidence and risk based assessment of all potential enforcement sites, a full assessment is made and if there is evidence of speed and a risk to road users then camera enforcement will be considered as a potential solution.
“There are a number of considerations and checks made before deploying cameras, these include: evidence of excessive speed from speed survey data; collision and casualty data; potential risk to road users; analysis of traffic data; site assessment for suitability of mobile enforcement, including van placement and operational requirements.
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“In relation to specific sites on the A4 in this area, there has not been a continuous fault on the cameras, however enforcement was suspended temporarily at Bath Road, Sonning due to signage issues.
“This has since been rectified and enforcement has been taking place in 2022.
“Enforcement was temporarily suspended at London Road, Twyford due to operational reasons.
“Effective engineering measures must also be considered such as the road layout including road humps, chicanes and tyre rumble devices, these can be implemented by Highways England and local authorities in situations where general speed compliance is evidenced as an issue.”
The police have encouraged the public to report speeding and poor driving online or by calling 101.
Additionally, the public can get involved in clamping down on speeding by joining or setting up Community Speedwatch in the area.
Community Speedwatch works by providing volunteers with speed capture equipment to catch out rule breakers.
If speeding is found, volunteers can then send the proof to the police for prosecution.
More information on speedwatch can be found on the Thames Valley Police and Crime Commissioner website.
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