Action call after road deaths

A PERSONAL injury lawyer has called on authorities to take immediate action to tackle accident blackspots.

The call follows two inquests last week into deaths on the A672 Ripponden Road, which revealed how a substandard camber contributed to crashes.

It emerged that Oldham Council had not carried out planned road surfacing work a year before the accidents. Remedial work was completed only after the second fatality.

Jonathan Betts, of Irwin Mitchell Solicitors, said: “This case appears to be similar to a number of cases we deal with in which a person is harmed through no fault of their own. We hope that lessons are learned from this inquest and that local authorities undertake appropriate safety work at accident sites which are known to present a hazard to drivers, so that any further tragedy like this is prevented in the future.”

John Quinn (47), a father-of-five from Ashton, died from multiple injuries when he crashed into an out-of-control car that had careered in front of his motorbike on the notorious Besom Hill bend in Moorside, on May 5, last year.

The council found the section of road had a sub-standard camber, affecting road surface friction in wet weather. One side of the road — an uphill section heading towards Oldham — was found to have a better natural grip than the other side, which caused cars crossing the centre line to spin.

Remedial work was not carried out until three weeks after a second fatality last August when car passenger Benjamin Jessop, from Barnsley, died in a crash at the same spot. An inquest into his death has been adjourned until next week.

A new road dressing was put down along with signs advising motorists to drive at 30mph round the bend. There have been no reported accidents since.

Police officers identified 11 similar collisions reported to them on the same bend and say many more may have gone unreported.

Mr Quinn’s family is considering legal action against the driver and Oldham Council on the basis of the loss of control of the car and problems identified concerning the road surface.