Tragedy has struck once again on the A417 in Gloucestershire, as another fatal crash adds to the road’s grim history. Over the past five years, six lives have been lost on this stretch, which has gained notoriety as a crash blackspot due to its steep gradients, congested junctions, and narrow single lanes causing frequent bottlenecks.
The A417 Missing Link refers to a problematic three-mile section of single carriageway sandwiched between two dual carriageways. Here, traffic is forced to navigate winding, narrow lanes with limited visibility, contributing to a high incidence of serious accidents.
National Highways acknowledges the dangers of this section, citing “poor visibility and other factors” as key reasons why serious crashes often occur. In response, a major project to replace this section with a new dual carriageway is underway, with an estimated cost between £460 million and £500 million. This upgrade aims to enhance road safety, ease congestion, and simultaneously protect and improve the surrounding Cotswolds National Landscape.
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Despite plans for the improved A417 Missing Link to open in spring 2027, serious accidents have persisted in the meantime. On February 1, a fatal two-vehicle collision near Birdlip claimed the life of a man and left two women and two children hospitalized.
Other recent tragedies include the death of a 20-year-old in an October 2025 tractor crash on Old Birdlip Hill, a motorcyclist fatally injured in an April 2025 single-vehicle crash between the M5 and Birdlip Roundabout, and multiple fatal multi-vehicle collisions in 2022 near Over roundabout and the Air Balloon junction, underscoring the route’s ongoing risks.
Aside from these fatal incidents, numerous serious crashes have occurred, including cases requiring airlifting of injured victims and collisions with central reservations along the route.
A 2022 crash map clearly highlighted a cluster of serious and fatal incidents between the Air Balloon roundabout and Cowley. This pattern reinforces the urgent need for the comprehensive safety upgrades planned for the Missing Link.
National Highways remains committed to delivering the new dual carriageway which promises not only to save lives but also to improve traffic flow and preserve the iconic Cotswolds landscape when it opens to traffic in spring 2027.