A415: second horror in just five days (From Witney Gazette)

A415: second horror in just five days

9:00am Wednesday 15th November 2006 in Witney By Rosalind Miles

A SECOND horrific accident has happened on the A415 in just five days.

A woman was rescued from the wreckage of her overturned car last Wednesday, after it was involved in a collision with another car on the A415 near Cokethorpe School.

Firefighters spent an hour supporting the body of the severely injured woman in her 60s, as she was cut free from her car.

The crash was just 125 metres from where 21-year-old James Franklin was killed the Saturday before.

As reported in the Gazette, Mr Franklin was the fifth person to die on the stretch of road in three years. The latest accident has raised more questions about what can be done to make the road safer.

District councillor for Standlake, Brenda Smith, said: "Twice in five days is beyond a coincidence, it really is.

"Twice in five days is beyond a coincidence, it really is. I don't think the county council is taking it seriously, and meanwhile the toll is mounting. The county council should be asked what they say after dropping the A415 improvement scheme."

District councillor for Standlake, Brenda Smith

"I don't think the county council is taking it seriously, and meanwhile the toll is mounting. The county council should be asked what they say after dropping the A415 improvement scheme."

Steve Hayward, a district councillor for Ducklington, believes trees are blocking visibility on the road, and has called for them to be cut back.

He said: "Trees block the visibility from the end of the Ducklington bypass, just past Cokethorpe School to Mill turn. It's possible that's what causes accidents. There's a lot of commercial traffic on the road on the way to the industrial estate. The county council need to do something, instead of making excuses."

Staff at the county council say they will review the need for further safety measures.

Anthony Kirkwood, of the county council road safety engineering team, said: "Recent work includes the Yelford signals, 50mph-limit, and vehicle-activated signs. We monitor their effectiveness, and will, of course, review the need for further measures in the light of this.

"At the moment, it is too early to comment on future actions on the A415 in the vicinity of the recent tragic accident - this will depend on the completion of the investigations into this accident and other incidents in the general area."

Fire station manager Chris Wilson, from Rewley Road, in Oxford, has described the road as a notorious blackspot.

Mr Wilson and his crew arrived to find that the driver of a Peugeot 406 had managed to pull himself out of his battered car, but the woman was trapped in her Peugeot 206, which had overturned in a ditch.

He said: "The car was precariously positioned upside down, 10ft below the road, in a ditch, and in a foot of freezing water.

"We put two firefighters into the car, so they could support her and take the weight off the seatbelt, which was digging into her chest and stomach."

It was an hour before the woman could be extracted from her car. She was taken to the John Radcliffe Hospital, Oxford.

Mr Wilson said: "The scene of this latest collision was in sight of police signs stating 'Fatal accident here on Saturday'."

At 8.30am on that day, Mr Franklin, from Oxford, was driving his Renault Clio, when he was involved in a collision with a Ford Transit van. He later died at the John Radcliffe Hospital, as a result of his injuries. There have been 53 deaths on the county's roads this year - 13 more than last year.

Oxfordshire County Council had designed an A415 improvement scheme, to bid for funds from central Government. But it has since learned it is unlikely to win any funds.