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CrashStats

Fatal M1 crash in Luton on 8 October 2002 at 23:05 involving a Mazda 626

A Mazda 626, a Mercedes Sprinter van and a Renault 5 were involved in a crash on the M1 in Luton at 23:05 on Tuesday 8 October 2002. The 29-year-old male driver of the Mazda 626 and a 30-year-old male passenger in the Mazda 626 were killed, two other people were seriously injured and two were slightly injured.

It happened after dark under street lighting in fine weather on a dry dual carriageway with a 70 mph limit, away from any junction.

Severity
Fatal
Date
8 Oct 2002
Tuesday, 23:05
Vehicles
3
Mazda 626 and 2 others
Casualties
6
2 killed, 2 seriously injured, 2 slightly injured

Location of the crash

Police recorded the crash at latitude 51.89781, longitude -0.47073, in the LU4 postcode district and within the built-up area of Luton. It is one of the crashes that make up the Poets, Luton, LU4 0EJ area accident hotspot.

Map of where the crash happened in Luton

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  • 1 crash
  • Fatal

Collision details

Basic information

Reference
2002400C03201
Council area
Luton
Police force
Bedfordshire
Police attended the scene
Yes

Road and location details

First road class
Motorway
First road number
1
Road type
Dual carriageway
Speed limit
70 mph
Urban or rural
Urban
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
Dark, street lights lit
Weather
Fine, no high winds
Road surface
Dry

The 6 nearest recorded crashes

The nearest, 10 metres away, was a slight injury crash on 12 April 2012.

Vehicles involved (3)

  • Vehicle 1: Mazda 626

    Car

    Manoeuvre
    Changing lane to left
    Travelling from
    North
    Travelling to
    South
    Skidding and overturning
    Skidded and overturned
    Leaving the carriageway
    Nearside and rebounded
    First point of impact
    Front
    Driver sex
    Male
    Driver age
    29 years
    Engine capacity
    1,998 cc
    Fuel or propulsion
    Petrol
    Vehicle age
    1 year

  • Vehicle 2: Mercedes Sprinter

    Van or goods vehicle up to 3.5 tonnes

    Manoeuvre
    Going ahead
    Travelling from
    North
    Travelling to
    South
    First point of impact
    Nearside
    Driver sex
    Male
    Driver age
    36 years
    Engine capacity
    2,151 cc
    Fuel or propulsion
    Diesel
    Vehicle age
    13 years

  • Vehicle 3: Renault 5

    Car

    Manoeuvre
    Going ahead
    Travelling from
    North
    Travelling to
    South
    First point of impact
    Did not impact
    Driver sex
    Female
    Driver age
    33 years
    Engine capacity
    1,108 cc
    Fuel or propulsion
    Petrol
    Vehicle age
    8 years

Casualties (6)

  • Casualty 1: Driver

    Fatal

    Male, aged 29, car occupant, in vehicle 1 (Mazda 626)

  • Casualty 2: Passenger

    Fatal

    Male, aged 30, car occupant, in vehicle 1 (Mazda 626)

    Car passenger
    Front seat passenger

  • Casualty 3: Passenger

    Serious

    Male, aged 27, car occupant, in vehicle 1 (Mazda 626)

    Car passenger
    Rear seat passenger

  • Casualty 4: Passenger

    Slight

    Male, aged 12, car occupant, in vehicle 1 (Mazda 626)

    Car passenger
    Rear seat passenger

  • Casualty 5: Passenger

    Slight

    Male, aged 10, car occupant, in vehicle 1 (Mazda 626)

    Car passenger
    Rear seat passenger

  • Casualty 6: Passenger

    Serious

    Male, aged 2, car occupant, in vehicle 1 (Mazda 626)

    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 2002400C03201 in the data published on GOV.UK under the Open Government Licence v3.0, and one of the crashes counted in the Luton road accident statistics for 2002.