The list of ‘deadly’ roads includes the infamous North Yungas Road in Bolivia, a 50-mile-long single lane road, known as the ‘Route of Death’ due to its 200 hairpin bends and vertical drops of up to 3,000 ft into the Amazon jungle below. Also making the top 10 is Pakistan’s perilous Fairy Meadows, a 10-mile-long gravel road with tight turns and nothing to stop vehicles falling thousands of feet into the valley beneath.
Joining them on the list, compiled by experts at the car rental comparison website StressFreeCarRental.com,is the A57 Snake Pass, winding its way through the Peak District between Sheffield and Manchester. The road is described by the firm as a ‘hotspot for fatal accidents and is a notoriously hazardous road with blind summits and difficult bends’. The pass is usually forced to shut on average for 70 days of the year, the company states, due to dangeorus conditions caused by heavy snow and landslides.
Snake Pass is not the only UK road to feature in the global top 10. Bealach-na-ba road in the Scottish highlands, which is known as the ‘devil’s elbow’ and apparently boasts the steepest ascent of any road in the UK, also makes the list.
Snake Pass, which runs through the Peak District, between Sheffield and Manchester, has been named one of the world's 10 most dangerous roads
What is the advice for people using the A57 Snake Pass?
A spokesperson for StressFreeCarRental.com said: “Drivers are urged to proceed with extreme caution while attempting to tackle any of the most dangerous roads in the world. Whether someone is an exceptionally experienced driver or overconfident, is it not worth taking any chances.
“Motorists should always drive with caution and follow extra safety measures such as slowing down and being extra observant when navigating these roads. But really you should avoid these dangerous roads altogether. One wrong move on these roads will end in almost certain death for drivers.”
The world’s 10 deadliest roads, according to StressFreeCarRental.com
1. Skippers Canyon Road, New Zealand
This 16.5-mile route situated in the southwest of New Zealand was hand carved by miners in 1890, and many stretches still remain unaltered today. It is a winding, narrow road with twisty hairpin turns, high elevation, and steep grades.
2. El Caracol, Chile and Argentina
This road connecting Argentina and Chile, is located in the Andean mountains at an elevation of over 3900 metres. It has multiple tight bends, particularly on the Chilean side, and it is especially dangerous due to the heavy lorries that regularly cross.
3. North Yungas Road, Bolivia
Known locally as the "route of death," this single lane road spans 50 miles with vertical drops of up to 3000 ft into the Amazon jungle below. This road is home to a staggering 200 hairpin twists.
4. Taroko Gorge Road, Taiwan
This winding road snakes through the mountains. Despite its frightening reputation, it remains popular due to the breath-taking beauty of its surroundings. However, parts of the route are often impassable due to severe rainfall and typhoons triggering land and rock slides.
5. Fairy Meadows Road, Pakistan
Spanning 10 miles, this unpaved road connecting Karakoram Highway to Tato village is extremely dangerous. As it’s a unstable gravel road with a hazardous high altitude and tight turns, there is nothing to prevent a vehicle from falling with a multi-thousand-metre drop to the valley below.
6. Zojila Pass, India
Located 11,500ft above sea level, this terrifying mountain pass in India has no protective barriers and is notorious for landslides. The road is extremely narrow, and in many places is just one way - making it one of the most dangerous passing places in the world. Vicious winds and heavy snowfall means there has been many rescue missions to help people trapped there.
7. Snake Pass, England
The Snake Pass in the Peak District is a hotspot for fatal accidents and is a notoriously hazardous road with blind summits and difficult bends. The pass is usually forced to shut on average for 70 days of the year due to dangeorus conditions caused by heavy snow and landslides.
8. Route 1, America
The US Route 1 along the East Coast of America is certainly not for the faint hearted as a part of the path is one of the longest overwater roads in the world and has seen many fatalities over the years. The miles of bridge over deep waters means many drivers feel scared and daunted as they pass over.
9. Bealach-na-ba road, Scotland
Located in the Applecross peninsula in the Scottish, Highlands, the isolated so-called road, also known as the ‘devils elbow’ boasts the steepest ascent of any road in the UK at 2,054 feet. This narrow and mountainous pass has a fearsome reputation due to its terrifying sharp hairpin terrifying twists and turns and steep gradients approaching 17%.
10. Sani Pass, South Africa
Sani Pass is a high mountain road which stands at an elevation of 9,400ft, and is littered with the remains of the vehicles that failed to make the ascent. The notoriously dangerous road requires the use of a 4x4 vehicle, due to its water crossings, waterfalls, hairpin bends, and switchbacks with steep angles of up to 180˚.
