Revealed: Britain’s most dangerous roads are in Wales

A study has revealed that Britain’s most dangerous roads are in Wales, with Powys topping out the list.

Swansea is bucking the trend however, as the city’s roads rank as the 4th safest in all of the UK.

The research by price comparison site Forbes Advisor compared the total number of road casualties in each local authority in Britain in 2021 with each area’s population to reveal the rate of deaths or serious injuries per 100,000 people.

The results show Powys as having the most dangerous roads in Britain, with 101 deaths or serious injuries per 100,000 people in 2021.

The second most dangerous roads in Britain are also in Wales. Last year, 69 people were killed or seriously injured on roads in Ceredigion, which when compared with the population translates to the second highest rate in the study.

Blackpool ranks third in the study for its treacherous roads. The research found that 82 people per 100,000 were killed or seriously injured on these roads in 2021.

In fourth place is the London borough of Westminster, which also saw a very similar proportion of people involved in serious or fatal traffic accidents.

Wales features for a third time in the top five for the number of people killed or seriously injured: Monmouthshire recorded 78 serious injuries or fatalities roads in 2021.

In contrast, Bath and North-East Somerset has the safest roads in mainland Britain, after 18 people out of a population of 196,357 were killed or seriously injured in 2021. 

Aberdeen City and East Dunbartonshire, both in Scotland, come second and third for Britain’s safest roads. Per 100,000 people, there were 12 deaths or serious injuries in Aberdeen City and 14 in East Dunbartonshire last year.

Wales makes a notable appearance in the list again, but this time it’s for a positive reason. The country’s second-largest city, Swansea, has one of the lowest rates of serious traffic accidents, with 15 people per 100,000 involved in them last year.

The full results of the research are as follows:

Most dangerous roads in Britain

Safest roads in Britain

Including local authorities off the mainland, the Isles of Scilly has the safest roads in Britain, with no one killed or seriously injured in traffic accidents in 2021.

A Forbes Advisor spokesperson commented on the findings: “The two local authorities that reported the highest proportion of deaths or serious injuries last year are both located in Wales. 

“The relatively high number of people seriously injured or killed in traffic accidents in Wales could be down to the higher percentage of rural roads in the country, which typically see more casualties than roads in urban areas. 

“However, all parts of the country feature in our ‘Worst 10’ tables, so it’s important that drivers take the utmost care when behind the wheel.”