Skip to main content
CrashStats

Fatal A39 crash in Somerset on 25 May 1997 at 19:05 involving a Honda VFR750F motorcycle

Four vehicles, including a Honda VFR750F motorcycle and a Ford Fiesta, were involved in a crash on the A39 in Somerset at 19:05 on Sunday 25 May 1997. The 34-year-old male rider of the Honda VFR750F motorcycle was killed and the 53-year-old male driver of the Ford Fiesta and the 20-year-old male driver of the Ford Transit van were slightly injured.

It happened in daylight in fine weather on a dry single carriageway with a 60 mph limit, away from any junction.

Severity
Fatal
Date
25 May 1997
Sunday, 19:05
Vehicles
4
Honda VFR750F and 3 others
Casualties
3
1 killed, 2 slightly injured

Location of the crash

Police recorded the crash at latitude 51.12947, longitude -3.03746, in the TA6 postcode district. The location was in the former Sedgemoor district.

Map of where the crash happened in Somerset

Use the arrow keys to move the map and the plus and minus keys to zoom.

  • 1 crash
  • Fatal

Collision details

Basic information

Reference
1997520018033
Council area
Somerset
Police force
Avon and Somerset

Road and location details

First road class
A
First road number
39
Road type
Single carriageway
Speed limit
60 mph
Urban or rural
Rural
Trunk road
Non-trunk road

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, at the same spot, was a slight injury crash on 30 October 1998.

Vehicles involved (4)

  • Vehicle 1: Honda VFR750F

    Motorcycle

    Manoeuvre
    Going ahead
    Travelling from
    West
    Travelling to
    East
    Skidding and overturning
    Skidded
    First point of impact
    Front
    Driver sex
    Male
    Driver age
    34 years
    Engine capacity
    748 cc
    Fuel or propulsion
    Petrol
    Vehicle age
    8 years

  • Vehicle 2: Ford Fiesta

    Car

    Towing and articulation
    Caravan
    Manoeuvre
    Going ahead
    Travelling from
    East
    Travelling to
    West
    First point of impact
    Offside
    Driver sex
    Male
    Driver age
    53 years
    Engine capacity
    1,117 cc
    Fuel or propulsion
    Petrol
    Vehicle age
    10 years

  • Vehicle 3: Rover 600 Series

    Car

    Manoeuvre
    Going ahead
    Travelling from
    East
    Travelling to
    West
    First point of impact
    Offside
    Driver sex
    Male
    Driver age
    77 years
    Engine capacity
    1,997 cc
    Fuel or propulsion
    Petrol
    Vehicle age
    1 year

  • Vehicle 4: Ford Transit

    Van or goods vehicle up to 3.5 tonnes

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

Casualties (3)

  • Casualty 1: Rider

    Fatal

    Male, aged 34, motorcyclist, on vehicle 1 (Honda VFR750F)

  • Casualty 2: Driver

    Slight

    Male, aged 53, car occupant, in vehicle 2 (Ford Fiesta)

  • Casualty 3: Driver

    Slight

    Male, aged 20, van occupant, in vehicle 4 (Ford Transit)

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 1997520018033 in the data published on GOV.UK under the Open Government Licence v3.0, and one of the crashes counted in the Somerset road accident statistics for 1997.