Councils recognised for safety improvements on dangerous A-road
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Sandwell Council has received the Road Safety Foundation’s Exemplary Urban Scheme Award for improvements to the A4030 through Smethwick and Bearwood. The recognition highlights an evidence-led approach to reducing risks on a busy urban route, particularly for pedestrians and cyclists, and is intended to support safer travel and neighbourhoods.
The £750,000 government-funded scheme introduced upgraded pedestrian crossings, cycling facilities, wider pavements, lower speed limits and other measures to reduce road danger along 2.8km of the A4030. The council forecasts that the changes could prevent about 24 deaths or serious injuries over the next 20 years; the award was presented at the House of Lords.
- Sandwell won a national award for A4030 safety improvements.
- The £750,000 scheme targets pedestrians, cyclists and drivers.
- Changes could prevent 24 serious casualties over 20 years.
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Sandwell Council covers part of the West Midlands, and the A4030 is a busy road running through Smethwick and Bearwood used by drivers, cyclists and pedestrians alike. Like many urban routes carrying heavy traffic, it has historically posed safety risks, prompting calls for improvements to protect people travelling along it, especially those on foot or bike.
The Road Safety Foundation is an independent charity that assesses road safety across the UK and gives awards to schemes that demonstrate effective, evidence-based improvements. Its recognition of a project typically signals that the work is seen as a model others could follow, based on measurable reductions in risk rather than just visible changes.
This matters because road danger reduction schemes are often funded by government money and judged on whether they actually save lives over time, not just how they look. Independent recognition of this kind offers a way to assess whether such investment is working, which is relevant to other councils considering similar upgrades on busy urban roads.
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Originally published by 🔎 Sheffield as “Councils win safety award for work on notorious ‘A’ road – thestar.co.uk”.