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CrashStats

M26 accidents: crash map and statistics

Police recorded 558 collisions on the M26 from 1980 to 2025, with 879 casualties. Of those crashes, 26 were fatal and 90 serious, and 33 people were killed.

In 2025 there were 9 collisions on the M26, down 10% from 10 in 2024, with 12 casualties.

Live M26 closures, incidents and roadworks are checked every 5 minutes.

Collisions since 1980
558
1,797th highest of 4,923 roads
Casualties
879
1.58 per collision
Fatal collisions
26
33 people killed
Serious collisions
90
132 seriously injured
Collisions in 2025
9
Down 10% on 2024
Casualties in 2025
12
Down 20% on 2024

Crash severity on the M26

On the M26, 4.7% of collisions were fatal and 16% serious, against 1.6% and 18% across Great Britain.

Collisions by severity, 1980 to 2025

  • Fatal264.7%
  • Serious9016%
  • Slight44279%

Where the M26 ranks among 4,923 roads

Most collisions
1,797th
Most casualties
1,590th
Most fatal collisions
771st
Most serious collisions
2,092nd

M26 accidents by year

Collisions on the M26 peaked at 26 in 2014 and were down to 9 in 2025.

Collisions and casualties on the M26, 1980 to 2025

  • Collisions
  • Collisions in 2025: 9
  • Casualties

Source: Department for Transport, STATS19 road safety data

View as a table
YearCollisionsCasualties
2025912
20241015
2023610
2022510
2021813
20201120
20191018
20181220
20171219
20161928
20151738
20142646
20132034
20121629
20111423
20102537
20091214
20081321
20071826
20061520
20052332
20041619
20031824
20021726
20011723
20002127
19991016
19981320
1997710
19961116
19951224
1994817
1993614
1992920
1991915
19901519
19891523
1988814
1987918
198666
198556
198411
198347
19821218
198167
198024

When crashes happen on the M26

Friday has the most collisions on the M26 (104), and 3pm to 6pm is the busiest time of day (115).

Collisions by day of the week

  • Monday77 (14%)
  • Tuesday87 (16%)
  • Wednesday73 (13%)
  • Thursday85 (15%)
  • Friday104 (19%)
  • Saturday69 (12%)
  • Sunday63 (11%)

Collisions by time of day

  • Midnight to 3am34 (6.1%)
  • 3am to 6am37 (6.6%)
  • 6am to 9am100 (18%)
  • 9am to noon64 (11%)
  • Noon to 3pm89 (16%)
  • 3pm to 6pm115 (21%)
  • 6pm to 9pm88 (16%)
  • 9pm to midnight31 (5.6%)

Collisions by month

  • January36 (6.5%)
  • February46 (8.2%)
  • March45 (8.1%)
  • April40 (7.2%)
  • May44 (7.9%)
  • June45 (8.1%)
  • July53 (9.5%)
  • August56 (10%)
  • September46 (8.2%)
  • October45 (8.1%)
  • November56 (10%)
  • December46 (8.2%)

Light conditions at the time

  • Daylight373 (67%)
  • Dark, no street lighting144 (26%)
  • Dark, street lights lit24 (4.3%)
  • Dark, lighting unknown9 (1.6%)
  • Dark, street lights unlit8 (1.4%)

Source: Department for Transport, STATS19 road safety data

Road and weather conditions in M26 crashes

On the M26, 95% of collisions happened where the speed limit was 70 mph and 70% on a dry road surface.

Speed limit at the scene

  • 30 mph1 (0.2%)
  • 40 mph2 (0.4%)
  • 50 mph14 (2.5%)
  • 60 mph10 (1.8%)
  • 70 mph531 (95%)

Weather at the time

  • Fine, no high winds432 (77%)
  • Raining, no high winds82 (15%)
  • Fog or mist11 (2%)
  • Raining with high winds10 (1.8%)
  • Other20 (3.6%)
  • Not recorded3 (0.5%)

Road surface

  • Dry390 (70%)
  • Wet or damp156 (28%)
  • Frost or ice10 (1.8%)
  • Flood over 3cm deep1 (0.2%)
  • Snow1 (0.2%)

Type of road

  • Dual carriageway521 (93%)
  • One way street or slip road19 (3.4%)
  • Single carriageway12 (2.2%)
  • Roundabout5 (0.9%)
  • Not recorded1 (0.2%)

Source: Department for Transport, STATS19 road safety data

People hurt and vehicles involved in M26 crashes

Car occupants make up 77% of the people killed or injured on the M26, followed by van occupants (9.4%).

Casualties by road user

  • Car occupant677 (77%)
  • Van occupant83 (9.4%)
  • Motorcyclist45 (5.1%)
  • Goods vehicle occupant (over 3.5 tonnes)42 (4.8%)
  • Pedestrian14 (1.6%)
  • Minibus occupant9 (1%)
  • Other vehicle occupant5 (0.6%)
  • Other4 (0.5%)

Vehicles involved

  • Car734 (68%)
  • Goods vehicle over 3.5 tonnes172 (16%)
  • Van or goods vehicle up to 3.5 tonnes105 (9.7%)
  • Motorcycle42 (3.9%)
  • Goods vehicle, weight unknown10 (0.9%)
  • Other vehicle8 (0.7%)
  • Other7 (0.6%)
  • Not recorded3 (0.3%)

Casualties by age

  • 0 to 514 (1.6%)
  • 6 to 1020 (2.3%)
  • 11 to 1521 (2.4%)
  • 16 to 2083 (9.4%)
  • 21 to 25106 (12%)
  • 26 to 35207 (24%)
  • 36 to 45173 (20%)
  • 46 to 55102 (12%)
  • 56 to 6585 (9.7%)
  • 66 to 7542 (4.8%)
  • Over 7512 (1.4%)
  • Not recorded14 (1.6%)

Drivers, passengers and pedestrians

  • Driver or rider551 (63%)
  • Passenger314 (36%)
  • Pedestrian14 (1.6%)

Source: Department for Transport, STATS19 road safety data

Map of recent crashes on the M26

Map of the 25 most recent crashes on the M26

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

  • 25 crashes
  • Fatal
  • Serious
  • Slight

M26 crashes by council area

Collisions on the M26 were recorded in 2 council areas. Tonbridge and Malling has the most, with 286, followed by Sevenoaks (272).

Collisions on the M26 in each area, 1980 to 2025
RankAreaCollisionsCasualtiesFatalSerious
1stTonbridge and Malling2864421430
2ndSevenoaks2724371260

Recent crashes on the M26

These are the 25 most recent collisions on the M26, from 8 January 2023 to 4 December 2025.

Severity