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CrashStats

Atherton road accidents: crash map and statistics

Police recorded 2,908 road traffic collisions in Atherton, Wigan, from 1979 to 2025, and 3,795 people were killed or injured in them. Of those collisions, 37 were fatal and 362 were serious.

In 2025 police recorded 15 collisions, down from 17 in 2024.

Collisions since 1979
2,908
343rd highest of 2,851 towns
Casualties
3,795
1.31 per collision
Fatal collisions
37
39 people killed
Serious collisions
362
385 seriously injured
Collisions in 2025
15
17 in 2024
Casualties in 2025
20
Down 9% on 2024

Road collision statistics for Atherton

Collisions by severity, 1979 to 2025

  • Fatal371.3%
  • Serious36212%
  • Slight2,50986%

What the data shows

  • Atherton had 200 collisions from 2016 to 2025, 48% fewer than the 385 from 2006 to 2015.
  • 14% of collisions in Atherton were fatal or serious, against 20% across Great Britain.
  • 778 children under 16 were killed or injured in Atherton, 21% of the casualties whose age was recorded.
  • The road surface was wet, icy, snowy or flooded in 37% of collisions in Atherton.

Where Atherton ranks among 2,851 towns

Most collisions
343rd
Most casualties
327th
Most fatal collisions
287th
Most serious collisions
439th

Collisions by day of the week

  • Monday396 (14%)
  • Tuesday404 (14%)
  • Wednesday412 (14%)
  • Thursday469 (16%)
  • Friday462 (16%)
  • Saturday431 (15%)
  • Sunday334 (11%)

Light conditions

  • Daylight2,050 (70%)
  • Dark, street lights lit807 (28%)
  • Dark, lighting unknown32 (1.1%)
  • Dark, no street lighting12 (0.4%)
  • Dark, street lights unlit7 (0.2%)

Type of road

  • Single carriageway2,440 (84%)
  • One way street or slip road262 (9%)
  • Roundabout95 (3.3%)
  • Dual carriageway62 (2.1%)
  • Not recorded49 (1.7%)

Speed limit at the scene

  • 20 mph49 (1.7%)
  • 30 mph2,603 (90%)
  • 40 mph187 (6.4%)
  • 50 mph2 (0.1%)
  • 60 mph53 (1.8%)
  • 70 mph14 (0.5%)

Weather at the time

  • Fine, no high winds2,266 (78%)
  • Raining, no high winds450 (15%)
  • Raining with high winds53 (1.8%)
  • Fine with high winds51 (1.8%)
  • Snowing, no high winds16 (0.6%)
  • Fog or mist9 (0.3%)
  • Snowing with high winds3 (0.1%)
  • Other27 (0.9%)
  • Not recorded33 (1.1%)

Who was hurt

  • Car occupant1,931 (51%)
  • Pedestrian871 (23%)
  • Motorcyclist380 (10%)
  • Cyclist366 (9.6%)
  • Bus or coach occupant94 (2.5%)
  • Van occupant90 (2.4%)
  • Taxi or private hire car occupant19 (0.5%)
  • Other vehicle occupant17 (0.4%)
  • Goods vehicle occupant (over 3.5 tonnes)16 (0.4%)
  • Minibus occupant10 (0.3%)
  • Other1 (under 0.1%)

Source: Department for Transport, STATS19 road safety data

Atherton road accidents by year

Collisions and casualties in Atherton, 1979 to 2025

Collisions in Atherton peaked at 113 in 1990; 2025 had 15.

  • Collisions
  • Collisions in 2025: 15
  • Casualties

Source: Department for Transport, STATS19 road safety data

View as a table
YearCollisionsCasualties
20251520
20241722
20231622
20222327
20211621
20201921
20192226
20182636
20172831
20161821
20152023
20142235
20132636
20123546
20112537
20102539
20095069
20084759
20076285
200673109
20056177
20047591
200392116
200275109
20018299
200099126
199982124
199897134
1997104151
19967491
199593118
1994101129
199391113
199279106
1991106131
1990113181
198998125
198879108
19877591
19868192
19858292
198485101
198390107
19827998
198186114
198075105
19796981

Map of recent crashes in Atherton

Map of the 24 most recent crashes in Atherton

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

  • 24 crashes
  • Serious
  • Slight

Recent road crashes in Atherton

The 24 most recent collisions in Atherton happened between 21 May 2024 and 12 December 2025.

Severity

Crashes by road in Atherton

The A577 has the most collisions in Atherton, 743 of 2,908 (26%), followed by the A579 (645).

Collisions in Atherton on each road, 1979 to 2025
RankRoadCollisionsCasualtiesFatalSerious
1stA577743958691
2ndA5796458861088
3rdB5215181256320
4thA6101156214
5thB5235344404
6thM61141820
7thA5726700
8thB52124400
9thA5733301

Council areas covering Atherton

Collisions in Atherton were recorded in 2 council areas. Wigan has 2,573 of 2,908 (88%).

Collisions in Atherton by council area, 1979 to 2025
RankCouncil areaCollisionsCasualtiesFatalSerious
1stWigan2,5733,29527320
2ndBolton3344991042

Postcode districts in Atherton

Collisions in Atherton were recorded in 4 postcode districts, led by M46 (2,496) and BL5 (265).