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CrashStats

Fatal A38 crash in the South Hams on 2 May 1981 at 11:35 involving a motorcycle

A motorcycle and a car were involved in a crash on the A38 in the South Hams at 11:35 on Saturday 2 May 1981. The 19-year-old male rider of the motorcycle was killed.

It happened in daylight in fine but windy weather on a dry dual carriageway with a 70 mph limit, away from any junction.

Severity
Fatal
Date
2 May 1981
Saturday, 11:35
Vehicles
2
Motorcycle and car
Casualties
1
1 killed

Location of the crash

Police recorded the crash at latitude 50.38333, longitude -3.97477, in the PL21 postcode district.

Map of where the crash happened in the South Hams

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  • 1 crash
  • Fatal

Collision details

Basic information

Reference
198150G460314
Council area
South Hams
Police force
Devon and Cornwall

Road and location details

First road class
A
First road number
38
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
Daylight
Weather
Fine with high winds
Road surface
Dry

The 6 nearest recorded crashes

The nearest, 10 metres away, was a slight injury crash on 17 January 2005.

Vehicles involved (2)

  • Vehicle 1: Motorcycle

    Manoeuvre
    Overtaking moving vehicle on its offside
    Travelling from
    West
    Travelling to
    East
    Leaving the carriageway
    Offside onto central reservation
    First point of impact
    Nearside
    Driver sex
    Male
    Driver age
    19 years

  • Vehicle 2: Car

    Manoeuvre
    Going ahead
    Travelling from
    West
    Travelling to
    East
    First point of impact
    Back
    Driver sex
    Male
    Driver age
    49 years

Casualties (1)

  • Casualty 1: Rider

    Fatal

    Male, aged 19, motorcyclist, on vehicle 1 (Motorcycle)

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 198150G460314 in the data published on GOV.UK under the Open Government Licence v3.0, and one of the crashes counted in the South Hams road accident statistics for 1981.