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CrashStats

Fatal M40 crash in Buckinghamshire on 18 December 1981 at 00:30 involving a car

Six cars were involved in a crash on the M40 in Buckinghamshire at 00:30 on Friday 18 December 1981. The 44-year-old male driver of vehicle 1 was killed and the 32-year-old male driver of vehicle 2 was seriously injured.

It happened after dark with no street lighting in fine weather on a wet dual carriageway with a 70 mph limit, away from any junction.

Severity
Fatal
Date
18 Dec 1981
Friday, 00:30
Vehicles
6
Car and 5 others
Casualties
2
1 killed, 1 seriously injured

Location of the crash

Police recorded the crash at latitude 51.60454, longitude -0.70184, in the HP10 postcode district and within the built-up area of Bourne End and Flackwell Heath. The location was in the former Wycombe district.

Map of where the crash happened in Buckinghamshire

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  • 1 crash
  • Fatal

Collision details

Basic information

Reference
198143B047121
Council area
Buckinghamshire
Police force
Thames Valley

Road and location details

First road class
Motorway
First road number
40
Road type
Dual carriageway
Speed limit
70 mph

Junction information

Junction type
Not at junction or within 20 metres

Pedestrian crossing information

Crossing facilities
No physical crossing facility within 50 m

Environmental conditions

Light conditions
Dark, no street lighting
Weather
Fine, no high winds
Road surface
Wet or damp
Carriageway hazards
Involvement with previous collision

The 6 nearest recorded crashes

The nearest, 14 metres away, was a slight injury crash on 9 January 2019.

Vehicles involved (6)

  • Vehicle 1: Car

    Manoeuvre
    Going ahead
    Travelling from
    North West
    Travelling to
    South East
    First point of impact
    Front
    Driver sex
    Male
    Driver age
    44 years

  • Vehicle 2: Car

    Manoeuvre
    Going ahead
    Travelling from
    South East
    Travelling to
    North West
    First point of impact
    Front
    Driver sex
    Male
    Driver age
    32 years

  • Vehicle 3: Car

    Manoeuvre
    Going ahead
    Travelling from
    South East
    Travelling to
    North West
    Hit object in carriageway
    Previous accident
    First point of impact
    Front
    Driver sex
    Male
    Driver age
    28 years

  • Vehicle 4: Car

    Manoeuvre
    Going ahead
    Travelling from
    South East
    Travelling to
    North West
    Hit object in carriageway
    Previous accident
    First point of impact
    Front
    Driver sex
    Male
    Driver age
    40 years

  • Vehicle 5: Car

    Manoeuvre
    Going ahead
    Travelling from
    South East
    Travelling to
    North West
    Hit object in carriageway
    Previous accident
    First point of impact
    Nearside
    Driver sex
    Male
    Driver age
    43 years

  • Vehicle 6: Car

    Manoeuvre
    Slowing or stopping
    Travelling from
    South East
    Travelling to
    North West
    First point of impact
    Offside
    Driver sex
    Male

Casualties (2)

  • Casualty 1: Driver

    Fatal

    Male, aged 44, car occupant, in vehicle 1 (Car)

  • Casualty 2: Driver

    Serious

    Male, aged 32, car occupant, in vehicle 2 (Car)

Data source

This record comes from the Department for Transport’s road safety data (STATS19), in which police forces in Great Britain record every road crash reported to them where someone was injured. It is reference 198143B047121 in the data published on GOV.UK under the Open Government Licence v3.0, and one of the crashes counted in the Buckinghamshire road accident statistics for 1981.