Skip to main content
CrashStats

A397 accidents: crash map and statistics

Police recorded 473 collisions on the A397 from 1979 to 2025, with 557 casualties. Of those crashes, 3 were fatal and 79 serious, and 3 people were killed.

In 2025 there were 10 collisions on the A397, up 67% from 6 in 2024, with 13 casualties.

Collisions since 1979
473
2,058th highest of 4,923 roads
Casualties
557
1.18 per collision
Fatal collisions
3
3 people killed
Serious collisions
79
83 seriously injured
Collisions in 2025
10
Up 67% on 2024
Casualties in 2025
13
Up 44% on 2024

Crash severity on the A397

On the A397, 0.6% of collisions were fatal and 17% serious, against 1.6% and 18% across Great Britain.

Collisions by severity, 1979 to 2025

  • Fatal30.6%
  • Serious7917%
  • Slight39183%

Where the A397 ranks among 4,923 roads

Most collisions
2,058th
Most casualties
2,257th
Most fatal collisions
3,114th
Most serious collisions
2,301st

A397 accidents by year

Collisions on the A397 peaked at 18 in 2013 and were down to 10 in 2025.

Collisions and casualties on the A397, 1979 to 2025

  • Collisions
  • Collisions in 2025
  • Casualties

Source: Department for Transport, STATS19 road safety data

View as a table
YearCollisionsCasualties
20251013
202469
202378
202234
202189
202056
201933
20181212
201755
20161213
20151115
20141623
20131818
2012912
20111214
20101011
200957
2008710
20071617
20061111
20051011
20041621
2003610
20021217
200199
20001822
19991214
199856
19971012
199699
19951721
1994910
199388
19921114
199189
19901722
198944
19881415
198788
198689
198512
19841315
19831212
19821213
19811313
19801318
19791213

When crashes happen on the A397

Tuesday has the most collisions on the A397 (81), and 3pm to 6pm is the busiest time of day (131).

Collisions by day of the week

  • Monday78 (16%)
  • Tuesday81 (17%)
  • Wednesday74 (16%)
  • Thursday67 (14%)
  • Friday80 (17%)
  • Saturday56 (12%)
  • Sunday37 (7.8%)

Collisions by time of day

  • Midnight to 3am12 (2.5%)
  • 3am to 6am0 (0%)
  • 6am to 9am61 (13%)
  • 9am to noon68 (14%)
  • Noon to 3pm92 (19%)
  • 3pm to 6pm131 (28%)
  • 6pm to 9pm80 (17%)
  • 9pm to midnight29 (6.1%)

Collisions by month

  • January47 (9.9%)
  • February37 (7.8%)
  • March40 (8.5%)
  • April38 (8%)
  • May37 (7.8%)
  • June35 (7.4%)
  • July35 (7.4%)
  • August42 (8.9%)
  • September35 (7.4%)
  • October43 (9.1%)
  • November49 (10%)
  • December35 (7.4%)

Light conditions at the time

  • Daylight344 (73%)
  • Dark, street lights lit111 (23%)
  • Dark, lighting unknown17 (3.6%)
  • Dark, street lights unlit1 (0.2%)

Source: Department for Transport, STATS19 road safety data

Road and weather conditions in A397 crashes

On the A397, 90% of collisions happened where the speed limit was 30 mph and 77% on a dry road surface.

Speed limit at the scene

  • 20 mph2 (0.4%)
  • 30 mph427 (90%)
  • 40 mph20 (4.2%)
  • 50 mph8 (1.7%)
  • 60 mph12 (2.5%)
  • 70 mph4 (0.8%)

Weather at the time

  • Fine, no high winds391 (83%)
  • Raining, no high winds52 (11%)
  • Fine with high winds9 (1.9%)
  • Raining with high winds4 (0.8%)
  • Other15 (3.2%)
  • Not recorded2 (0.4%)

Road surface

  • Dry365 (77%)
  • Wet or damp106 (22%)
  • Frost or ice1 (0.2%)
  • Snow1 (0.2%)

Type of road

  • Single carriageway231 (49%)
  • Dual carriageway145 (31%)
  • Roundabout96 (20%)
  • One way street or slip road1 (0.2%)

Source: Department for Transport, STATS19 road safety data

People hurt and vehicles involved in A397 crashes

Car occupants make up 44% of the people killed or injured on the A397, followed by motorcyclists (18%).

Casualties by road user

  • Car occupant244 (44%)
  • Motorcyclist98 (18%)
  • Pedestrian85 (15%)
  • Cyclist84 (15%)
  • Bus or coach occupant35 (6.3%)
  • Van occupant4 (0.7%)
  • Other5 (0.9%)
  • Not recorded2 (0.4%)

Vehicles involved

  • Car544 (64%)
  • Motorcycle108 (13%)
  • Pedal cycle88 (10%)
  • Bus or coach47 (5.5%)
  • Van or goods vehicle up to 3.5 tonnes27 (3.2%)
  • Taxi or private hire car26 (3%)
  • Goods vehicle over 3.5 tonnes8 (0.9%)
  • Other6 (0.7%)

Casualties by age

  • 0 to 55 (0.9%)
  • 6 to 1021 (3.8%)
  • 11 to 1542 (7.5%)
  • 16 to 20125 (22%)
  • 21 to 2571 (13%)
  • 26 to 35107 (19%)
  • 36 to 4571 (13%)
  • 46 to 5553 (9.5%)
  • 56 to 6537 (6.6%)
  • 66 to 7517 (3.1%)
  • Over 758 (1.4%)

Drivers, passengers and pedestrians

  • Driver or rider352 (63%)
  • Passenger120 (22%)
  • Pedestrian85 (15%)

Source: Department for Transport, STATS19 road safety data

Map of recent crashes on the A397

Map of the 25 most recent crashes on the A397

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

  • 25 crashes
  • Serious
  • Slight

A397 crashes by council area

Of the 473 collisions on the A397, 468 were in Portsmouth.

Collisions on the A397 in each area, 1979 to 2025
RankAreaCollisionsCasualtiesFatalSerious
1stPortsmouth468549379

A397 crashes by town

Of the 473 collisions on the A397, 362 were in the built-up area of Portsmouth.

Recent crashes on the A397

These are the 25 most recent collisions on the A397, from 15 September 2022 to 29 August 2025.

Severity