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CrashStats

M5 crash in North Somerset on 26 January 1997 at 11:00 involving a Ford Escort

A Ford Escort, a Skoda Felicia and a Toyota Carina were involved in a crash on the M5 in North Somerset at 11:00 on Sunday 26 January 1997. All four casualties were slightly injured.

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

Severity
Slight
Date
26 Jan 1997
Sunday, 11:00
Vehicles
3
Ford Escort and 2 others
Casualties
4
4 slightly injured

Location of the crash

Police recorded the crash at latitude 51.3173, longitude -2.88629, in the BS26 postcode district.

Map of where the crash happened in North Somerset

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  • 1 crash
  • Slight

Collision details

Basic information

Reference
1997520009155
Council area
North Somerset
Police force
Avon and Somerset

Road and location details

First road class
Motorway
First road number
5
Road type
Dual carriageway
Speed limit
70 mph
Urban or rural
Rural
Trunk road
Trunk road (National Highways)

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, no high winds
Road surface
Dry

The 6 nearest recorded crashes

The nearest, 13 metres away, was a slight injury crash on 30 August 2025.

Vehicles involved (3)

  • Vehicle 1: Ford Escort

    Car

    Manoeuvre
    Changing lane to right
    Travelling from
    South
    Travelling to
    North
    First point of impact
    Back
    Driver sex
    Female
    Driver age
    75 years
    Engine capacity
    1,296 cc
    Fuel or propulsion
    Petrol
    Vehicle age
    10 years

  • Vehicle 2: Skoda Felicia

    Car

    Manoeuvre
    Going ahead
    Travelling from
    South
    Travelling to
    North
    First point of impact
    Front
    Driver sex
    Male
    Driver age
    35 years
    Engine capacity
    1,289 cc
    Fuel or propulsion
    Petrol
    Vehicle age
    2 years

  • Vehicle 3: Toyota Carina

    Car

    Manoeuvre
    Going ahead
    Travelling from
    South
    Travelling to
    North
    First point of impact
    Front
    Driver sex
    Male
    Driver age
    45 years
    Engine capacity
    1,762 cc
    Fuel or propulsion
    Petrol
    Vehicle age
    2 years

Casualties (4)

  • Casualty 1: Driver

    Slight

    Female, aged 75, car occupant, in vehicle 1 (Ford Escort)

  • Casualty 2: Driver

    Slight

    Male, aged 35, car occupant, in vehicle 2 (Skoda Felicia)

  • Casualty 3: Passenger

    Slight

    Female, aged 8, car occupant, in vehicle 2 (Skoda Felicia)

    Car passenger
    Rear seat passenger

  • Casualty 4: Passenger

    Slight

    Male, aged 4, car occupant, in vehicle 2 (Skoda Felicia)

    Car passenger
    Rear seat passenger

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 1997520009155 in the data published on GOV.UK under the Open Government Licence v3.0, and one of the crashes counted in the North Somerset road accident statistics for 1997.