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CrashStats

B4542 accidents: crash map and statistics

Police recorded 603 collisions on the B4542 from 1979 to 2025, with 851 casualties. Of those crashes, 6 were fatal and 134 serious, and 6 people were killed.

In 2025 there were 9 collisions on the B4542, up 125% from 4 in 2024, with 14 casualties.

Collisions since 1979
603
1,688th highest of 4,923 roads
Casualties
851
1.41 per collision
Fatal collisions
6
6 people killed
Serious collisions
134
166 seriously injured
Collisions in 2025
9
Up 125% on 2024
Casualties in 2025
14
Up 250% on 2024

Crash severity on the B4542

On the B4542, 1% of collisions were fatal and 22% serious, against 1.6% and 18% across Great Britain.

Collisions by severity, 1979 to 2025

  • Fatal61%
  • Serious13422%
  • Slight46377%

Where the B4542 ranks among 4,923 roads

Most collisions
1,688th
Most casualties
1,642nd
Most fatal collisions
2,299th
Most serious collisions
1,507th

B4542 accidents by year

Collisions on the B4542 peaked at 28 in 1995 and were down to 9 in 2025.

Collisions and casualties on the B4542, 1979 to 2025

  • Collisions
  • Collisions in 2025: 9
  • Casualties

Source: Department for Transport, STATS19 road safety data

View as a table
YearCollisionsCasualties
2025914
202444
202346
202279
2021810
202068
201933
2018711
201755
2016811
201599
20141014
2013916
201279
20111116
201056
2009812
20081626
20071216
20061421
20051017
2004810
20031418
20021424
20011419
20002128
19991931
19982532
19972032
19961625
19952843
19942131
19931621
19921122
19911213
19902133
19891319
19881119
19871415
19861723
19851926
19841213
19831619
19822228
19811421
19801621
19791722

When crashes happen on the B4542

Friday has the most collisions on the B4542 (105), and 3pm to 6pm is the busiest time of day (142).

Collisions by day of the week

  • Monday90 (15%)
  • Tuesday83 (14%)
  • Wednesday85 (14%)
  • Thursday89 (15%)
  • Friday105 (17%)
  • Saturday85 (14%)
  • Sunday66 (11%)

Collisions by time of day

  • Midnight to 3am23 (3.8%)
  • 3am to 6am6 (1%)
  • 6am to 9am88 (15%)
  • 9am to noon88 (15%)
  • Noon to 3pm87 (14%)
  • 3pm to 6pm142 (24%)
  • 6pm to 9pm102 (17%)
  • 9pm to midnight67 (11%)

Collisions by month

  • January57 (9.5%)
  • February58 (9.6%)
  • March45 (7.5%)
  • April47 (7.8%)
  • May49 (8.1%)
  • June52 (8.6%)
  • July44 (7.3%)
  • August42 (7%)
  • September36 (6%)
  • October58 (9.6%)
  • November59 (9.8%)
  • December56 (9.3%)

Light conditions at the time

  • Daylight415 (69%)
  • Dark, street lights lit179 (30%)
  • Dark, street lights unlit6 (1%)
  • Dark, no street lighting2 (0.3%)
  • Dark, lighting unknown1 (0.2%)

Source: Department for Transport, STATS19 road safety data

Road and weather conditions in B4542 crashes

On the B4542, 94% of collisions happened where the speed limit was 30 mph and 64% on a dry road surface.

Speed limit at the scene

  • 20 mph2 (0.3%)
  • 30 mph568 (94%)
  • 40 mph11 (1.8%)
  • 60 mph22 (3.6%)

Weather at the time

  • Fine, no high winds480 (80%)
  • Raining, no high winds81 (13%)
  • Fine with high winds7 (1.2%)
  • Fog or mist5 (0.8%)
  • Other23 (3.8%)
  • Not recorded7 (1.2%)

Road surface

  • Dry387 (64%)
  • Wet or damp193 (32%)
  • Frost or ice17 (2.8%)
  • Snow3 (0.5%)
  • Flood over 3cm deep2 (0.3%)
  • Mud1 (0.2%)

Type of road

  • Single carriageway549 (91%)
  • Roundabout42 (7%)
  • Dual carriageway5 (0.8%)
  • One way street or slip road4 (0.7%)
  • Not recorded3 (0.5%)

Source: Department for Transport, STATS19 road safety data

People hurt and vehicles involved in B4542 crashes

Car occupants make up 67% of the people killed or injured on the B4542, followed by motorcyclists (12%).

Casualties by road user

  • Car occupant568 (67%)
  • Motorcyclist98 (12%)
  • Pedestrian95 (11%)
  • Cyclist49 (5.8%)
  • Van occupant18 (2.1%)
  • Bus or coach occupant9 (1.1%)
  • Minibus occupant5 (0.6%)
  • Other9 (1.1%)

Vehicles involved

  • Car909 (77%)
  • Motorcycle97 (8.3%)
  • Van or goods vehicle up to 3.5 tonnes63 (5.4%)
  • Pedal cycle50 (4.3%)
  • Bus or coach15 (1.3%)
  • Taxi or private hire car13 (1.1%)
  • Other25 (2.1%)
  • Not recorded1 (0.1%)

Casualties by age

  • 0 to 511 (1.3%)
  • 6 to 1048 (5.6%)
  • 11 to 1552 (6.1%)
  • 16 to 20147 (17%)
  • 21 to 25119 (14%)
  • 26 to 35145 (17%)
  • 36 to 45118 (14%)
  • 46 to 5578 (9.2%)
  • 56 to 6572 (8.5%)
  • 66 to 7532 (3.8%)
  • Over 7529 (3.4%)

Drivers, passengers and pedestrians

  • Driver or rider549 (65%)
  • Passenger207 (24%)
  • Pedestrian95 (11%)

Source: Department for Transport, STATS19 road safety data

Map of recent crashes on the B4542

Map of the 25 most recent crashes on the B4542

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

  • 25 crashes
  • Serious
  • Slight

B4542 crashes by council area

Collisions on the B4542 were recorded in 2 council areas. Three Rivers has the most, with 597, followed by Watford (5).

Collisions on the B4542 in each area, 1979 to 2025
RankAreaCollisionsCasualtiesFatalSerious
1stThree Rivers5978426132
2ndWatford5702

B4542 crashes by town

Collisions on the B4542 were recorded in 2 towns and built-up areas, led by Watford, Watford (431) and Eastbury, Three Rivers (11).

Recent crashes on the B4542

These are the 25 most recent collisions on the B4542, from 8 November 2021 to 23 November 2025.

Severity