Road collisions in Dorset
Police recorded 3,356 road collisions involving injury in Dorset between 2021 and 2025, about 671 a year. 63 of them were fatal, and an estimated 989 involved serious injury once DfT's severity adjustment is applied. These are reported injury collisions only: damage-only incidents and unreported injuries are not included.
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When collisions happen
The busiest hour was 5pm to 6pm, and 31% of collisions happened between 3pm and 7pm (fewer than the 32% across Great Britain). Friday had the most collisions, and 27% happened at weekends.
Trend over time
Reported collisions went from 621 in 2021 to 675 in 2025, a rise of 9%. Counts are affected by traffic levels, population and changes in how police record injuries, so Dorset should not be ranked against other areas on these numbers alone.
Who is affected
Across Dorset, 4,420 people were injured or killed in these collisions. Pedestrians were 9% of casualties (14% across Great Britain), pedal cyclists 8% (12%) and motorcyclists 14% (12%). Car and taxi occupants made up 62%. 13 of the pedestrians were killed.
Children aged 0 to 15 were 6% of casualties, lower than the 9% national share. People aged 16 to 25 were 21% (21% nationally), and people over 65 were 17% (10% nationally).
| Road user | Casualties | Share in Dorset | Share across GB |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pedestrians | 402 | 9.1% | 14.5% |
| Pedal cyclists | 350 | 7.9% | 11.9% |
| Motorcyclists | 623 | 14.1% | 12.4% |
| Car and taxi occupants | 2,732 | 61.8% | 54.4% |
| Bus and minibus occupants | 39 | 0.9% | 1.8% |
| Van and goods vehicle occupants | 232 | 5.2% | 3.5% |
| Other road users | 42 | 1.0% | 1.6% |
Casualties by age
| Age | Casualties | Share in Dorset | Share across GB |
|---|---|---|---|
| 0 to 5 | 54 | 1.2% | 1.6% |
| 6 to 10 | 78 | 1.8% | 2.6% |
| 11 to 15 | 153 | 3.5% | 4.8% |
| 16 to 20 | 557 | 12.6% | 10.6% |
| 21 to 25 | 392 | 8.9% | 11.0% |
| 26 to 35 | 734 | 16.6% | 20.8% |
| 36 to 45 | 548 | 12.4% | 15.8% |
| 46 to 55 | 582 | 13.2% | 12.8% |
| 56 to 65 | 566 | 12.8% | 10.1% |
| 66 to 75 | 440 | 10.0% | 5.3% |
| Over 75 | 313 | 7.1% | 4.5% |
Vehicles involved
11.6% of collisions involved a pedestrian casualty (17.7% nationally), 10.3% a cyclist (15.0%) and 17.6% a motorcyclist (15.3%). 3.9% involved a goods vehicle (3.9% nationally) and 23.9% involved a driver aged 17 to 24 (21.1%). 10 collisions involved an e-scooter.
| Vehicle | Vehicles | Share in Dorset | Share across GB |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cars and taxis | 4,153 | 69.6% | 69.7% |
| Vans (up to 3.5 tonnes) | 536 | 9.0% | 6.4% |
| Heavy goods vehicles | 140 | 2.3% | 2.3% |
| Motorcycles | 624 | 10.5% | 9.3% |
| Pedal cycles | 357 | 6.0% | 8.7% |
| Buses and minibuses | 47 | 0.8% | 1.8% |
| Other vehicles | 112 | 1.9% | 1.8% |
Collision hotspots in Dorset
These are the 100 metre squares with the most reported collisions in 2021 to 2025. Location is the average position of the collisions in each square, so treat it as approximate.
| # | Main road | Junction type | Collisions | Fatal | Map |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | A31 | Roundabout | 11 | 0 | View on map |
| 2 | A354 | Crossroads | 11 | 0 | View on map |
| 3 | A35 | Not at a junction | 9 | 0 | View on map |
| 4 | B3147 | T or staggered junction | 9 | 0 | View on map |
| 5 | B3150 | Roundabout | 8 | 0 | View on map |
| 6 | A31 | Not at a junction | 8 | 0 | View on map |
| 7 | A35 | Not at a junction | 7 | 0 | View on map |
| 8 | A354 | Not at a junction | 7 | 0 | View on map |
| 9 | A31 | T or staggered junction | 7 | 0 | View on map |
| 10 | B3067 | T or staggered junction | 7 | 0 | View on map |
| 11 | A35 | Roundabout | 7 | 0 | View on map |
| 12 | B3068 | Roundabout | 7 | 0 | View on map |
| 13 | A354 | Not at a junction | 7 | 0 | View on map |
| 14 | A30 | T or staggered junction | 6 | 0 | View on map |
| 15 | B3155 | Crossroads | 6 | 0 | View on map |
| 16 | A350 | T or staggered junction | 6 | 0 | View on map |
| 17 | A35 | Roundabout | 6 | 0 | View on map |
| 18 | A347 | Crossroads | 6 | 0 | View on map |
| 19 | B3144 | Not at a junction | 6 | 0 | View on map |
| 20 | Unnumbered road | T or staggered junction | 6 | 0 | View on map |
| 21 | B3072 | T or staggered junction | 6 | 0 | View on map |
| 22 | B3154 | Crossroads | 6 | 0 | View on map |
| 23 | A354 | T or staggered junction | 6 | 0 | View on map |
| 24 | A35 | Not at a junction | 6 | 0 | View on map |
| 25 | Unnumbered road | Crossroads | 6 | 0 | View on map |
Numbered roads with the most collisions
41% of collisions happened on roads with a 30 mph limit or lower (69% nationally), and 43% on roads with a 60 or 70 mph limit (18% nationally). 41% were at or within 20 metres of a junction or roundabout, lower than the national 54%.
| Road | Collisions | Fatal | Serious (est.) |
|---|---|---|---|
| A35 | 297 | 7 | 91 |
| A354 | 246 | 7 | 69 |
| A31 | 208 | 3 | 53 |
| B3081 | 108 | 2 | 28 |
| A352 | 104 | 2 | 31 |
| B3157 | 81 | 2 | 31 |
| A350 | 80 | 2 | 27 |
| A30 | 71 | 2 | 24 |
| A351 | 68 | 0 | 24 |
| B3159 | 64 | 2 | 20 |
| B3073 | 61 | 0 | 18 |
| B3078 | 57 | 2 | 17 |
| A37 | 52 | 2 | 15 |
| A348 | 50 | 1 | 17 |
| B3155 | 49 | 0 | 16 |
Collisions on unnumbered local streets are not listed here. Use the postcode search to see them.
Conditions
24% of collisions in Dorset happened in darkness, lower than the 28% across Great Britain. 29% happened on roads classed as urban, lower than the national 67%.
Type of road
| Type of road | Collisions | Share in Dorset | Share across GB |
|---|---|---|---|
| Motorway | 0 | 0.0% | 3.0% |
| A(M) road | 0 | 0.0% | 0.2% |
| A road | 1,398 | 41.7% | 44.0% |
| B road | 890 | 26.5% | 12.5% |
| C road | 580 | 17.3% | 4.4% |
| Unclassified road | 488 | 14.5% | 35.9% |
Speed limit
| Speed limit | Collisions | Share in Dorset | Share across GB |
|---|---|---|---|
| 20 mph | 35 | 1.0% | 17.1% |
| 30 mph | 1,351 | 40.3% | 52.0% |
| 40 mph | 288 | 8.6% | 8.7% |
| 50 mph | 234 | 7.0% | 4.4% |
| 60 mph | 1,343 | 40.0% | 12.2% |
| 70 mph | 105 | 3.1% | 5.5% |
Junctions
| Junctions | Collisions | Share in Dorset | Share across GB |
|---|---|---|---|
| Not at a junction | 1,980 | 59.3% | 45.9% |
| T or staggered junction | 789 | 23.6% | 28.5% |
| Crossroads | 166 | 5.0% | 9.5% |
| Junction with more than four arms | 26 | 0.8% | 1.6% |
| Private drive or entrance | 188 | 5.6% | 2.2% |
| Other junction | 39 | 1.2% | 6.1% |
| Roundabout | 151 | 4.5% | 6.2% |
Light conditions
| Light conditions | Collisions | Share in Dorset | Share across GB |
|---|---|---|---|
| Daylight | 2,558 | 76.2% | 71.7% |
| Darkness, street lights lit | 292 | 8.7% | 20.6% |
| Darkness, street lights unlit | 15 | 0.4% | 0.7% |
| Darkness, no street lighting | 457 | 13.6% | 5.3% |
| Darkness, lighting unknown | 34 | 1.0% | 1.7% |
Urban or rural
| Urban or rural | Collisions | Share in Dorset | Share across GB |
|---|---|---|---|
| Urban | 970 | 28.9% | 67.2% |
| Rural | 2,386 | 71.1% | 32.8% |
About these figures
Only collisions involving injury that were reported to the police are counted. The figures are not adjusted for traffic volume or population, so they should not be used to rank areas against each other. Serious and slight splits use the Department for Transport's severity adjustment. Full explanation.