As Sheffield Council works on a new ‘Dutch style roundabout’ scheme to try to make crossing West Bar safer, the incidents in the pictures show crashes on roads and railways across the city which should serve as a reminder as to why it is so important to drive carefully.
Sheffield Council is currently raising awareness of the new roundabout scheme, which gives pedestrians and cyclists the right of way. But a Sheffield Council report outlining the city’s road safety action plan stated that in 2022, a total of 306 people were killed or seriously injured in road traffic collisions in the city as a whole – an increase of 30 per cent compared to 2021.
When including slight injuries, the overall number of casualties was 979, a 2.2 per cent increase.
It added: “However,when comparing Sheffield data to 2019, KSIs and all reported injuries have reduced at a rate above the national average. Whilst comparing the data with pre-pandemic |levels, we can see that the numbers are reducing, much more needs to be done.
Included the in the city’s plan, which was approved in March, was the expansion of the School Streets programme and part-time 20mph zones where roads are either closed or the speed limit reduced during the morning and afternoon school runs to give pupils and their parents a safe place to walk, cycle or wheel to and from the classroom, as well as capital projects.
This gallery serves as a reminder of what can happen when something goes wrong – and these pictures show some of the crashes that have stopped the city in its tracks over the years.
The incidents pictured included here date back to the 1950s, and include incidents which have happened on the city’s roads, as well as its railways.
1. Meersbrook crash
This was the scene on Upper Albert Street, Meersbrook, in March 1989. The photo shows emergency services dealing with the incident. Photo:Sheffield Newspapers Ltd / Picture Sheffield | Photo:Sheffield Newspapers Ltd / Picture Sheffield Photo: Photo:Sheffield Newspapers Ltd / Picture Sheffield
2. Ambulance crash
An ambulance ended up on its roof after it was involved in a collision on the way to an emergency call out in Sheffield, September 17 2015. The driver was taken to hospital after the collision, involving two other vehicles on Birley Moor Road. At the time of the collision the ambulance was on its way to an emergency. Photo: Eamonn Chapman
3. Shalesmoor
This was the scene at the Junction of Infirmary Road and Terrace Road in Shalesmoor .in April 1999, after a collision between a car and a tram Photo: Barry Richardson
4. School bus
A school bus has crashed into a barbers shop on Handsworth. Road in Sheffield. Picture Scott Merrylees Photo: Scott Merrylees