Transport and Logistics Network
There is heavy traffic on the M6 again after second crash on the same stretch of motorway in two days.
Traffic was held for around 10 minutes on the southbound carriageway between Junction 28 for Leyland and Junction 27 for Standish this morning (Augus…
Emergency teams had worked through the night on the section of the carriageway between Junction 27 Wigan and Junction 28 Leyland.
This morning, lane three was still closed in both directions for barrier repairs and lane two was open southbound. Lanes o…
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New police investigations have been launched after speed camera saboteurs struck in Wigan yet again.
At some point during the night of August 11 to 12, the speed trap on Spring Road in Orrell was sawn down for the second time in a year and the one on Orrell Road, Orrell, met a similar fate for the first time.
They were the latest in a growing series of attacks which began at the turn of the year with cameras felled on Spring Road, Wallgate, Whelley and Warrington Road in Worsley Mesnes.
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[2]
The speed camera on Spring Road, Orrell, after it was attacked for the second time
Those cameras were eventually replaced – at a cost of £100,000 to the taxpayer – but last month the Whelley camera[3] was cut down again.
Now two more acts of criminal damage have been committed.
Danny Vaughan, Transport for Greater Manchester’s Chief Network Officer, said: “We strongly condemn the irresponsible actions of those who vandalise safety cameras, which are used to stop people speeding, reduce collisions and make our roads safer for all users.
“Speeding is highly dangerous and a cause in most fatal collisions on our roads.
The sawn down camera on Orrell Road
“It is beyond reckless for these people to vandalise these spot speed safety cameras, and unfortunately the cost of replacing or repairing these cameras places a burden on the taxpayer.
“I would strongly urge those responsible to consider the potential consequences of there being fewer safety cameras on our roads, and how they would feel if the next person killed by someone speeding is a friend, relative or loved one.”
When the Whelley camera was vandalised the first time, it fell into the road, causing a further hazard on the brow of the hill when the carriageway was already treacherous with winter snow and ice.
The first attack on the Spring Road camera was caught on CCTV and police will now be checking to see if there is any footage available of this and the other attack which would help them nail the criminal(s).
A man was arrested earlier this year on suspicion of causing criminal damage following the Warrington Road attack. He remains under investigation.
Anyone with information about the crimes is asked to ring police on 101 or Crimestoppers on 0800 555111.
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A road rage incident escalated into a shocking brawl which saw one man punched to the ground – and all of it was caught on dashcam. HGV driver Darren Waite was just trying to get home when he found himself having to split up the warring drivers coming …
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Police are hunting saboteurs after a Wigan speed camera was vandalised for the second time this year.
The criminal damage to the safety device on Whelley is the fifth such attack in the last eight months.
A transport chief today described the crime as “beyond reckless,” saying that speed is the biggest cause of deaths on Wigan’s roads.
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[2]
The Whelley speed camera reinstated earlier this year. Now it has gone again after a second act of criminal damage
New cameras which can catch speeders travelling in both directions were installed at key locations last autumn, but at the beginning of this year, four of them – on Spring Road in Kitt Green, Wallgate in Wigan, Warrington Road at Goose Green and the one on Whelley – had all been sawn down.
In the case of the last of these, the pole fell into the road which was covered with snow and ice at the time, creating a lethal hazard.
A 67-year-old man was arrested on suspicion of the Warrington Road attack and later bailed.
Following this latest incident – which was reported to police on June 21, Peter Boulton, Transport for Greater Manchester’s Highways Network Director, said: “We strongly condemn the irresponsible actions of those who vandalise safety cameras, which are used to stop people speeding, reduce collisions and make our roads safer for everyone who uses them.
The Whelley speed camera the first time it was felled in January
“Speeding in particular is a cause in most fatal collisions on our roads, and in Wigan alone 57 people were needlessly killed or serious injured between 2020 and 2022 as a result of speeding.
“This is the second time this specific camera has been vandalised. The camera has been temporarily removed and discussions between TfGM, the police and the local authority around its reinstatement are ongoing. Unfortunately, the cost of replacing or repairing these cameras falls on the taxpayer.
“It is beyond reckless for these people to vandalise these spot speed safety cameras, and I would urge them to consider the potential consequences of there being one less camera on our roads and how they would feel if the next person killed by someone speeding is a friend, relative or loved one.”
Safer Roads GM say the camera has been temporarily removed and they are now in talks with Greater Manchester Police and Wigan Council about its reinstatement.
Anyone with details on the attack are asked to ring police on 101 or Crimestoppers on 0800 555111.
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Loved ones of a Wigan 50-year-old fighting for his life in hospital after a rush hour crash have thanked the public for their kind wishes.
And they say that the man’s condition remains critical after Friday’s horror collision with a car in Ashton[2] town centre but have praised the medics caring for him.
Police[3] are appealing for witnesses and film footage of the incident involving the pedestrian and a silver Karoq Skoda[4] which mounted the kerb outside the Ashtan Tanning Lounge in Ashton-in-Makerfield and hit him on Friday June 14.
A distressed pensioner was reported to have told witnesses that he passed out at the wheel of his car and careered onto the pavement on Wigan[5] Road.
The Ashtan Tanning Lounge outside which the terrible accident took place
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It later emerged that the victim suffered leg and hip injuries, but, most seriously, a bleed on the brain which prompted intensive care unit doctors to put him into an induced coma.
Now relatives have provided a few further details via local councillor Danny Fletcher.
He wrote on social media: “Update from family of the individual seriously hurt on Friday night in Ashton centre.
“They would like to thank the Ashton community for their concern and best wishes. He is in excellent hands, but still in a critical state.
“Family taking things hour by hour and praying for a swift recovery.”
A Greater Manchester Police spokesman said: “At 5.09pm on Friday June 14, we were called to reports of a serious road traffic collision involving a vehicle and a pedestrian in Ashton-in-Makerfield.
“A silver Karoq Skoda travelling eastbound along Wigan Road from the junction of Bryn Road crossed the centre line entering the Westbound carriageway before colliding with a pedestrian.
“The pedestrian, 50-year-old man from Wigan, was struck while standing on a footpath outside of a business.
“Emergency services transported him to hospital with serious injuries, where he remains in critical condition.
“No other vehicles were involved, and no other injuries were reported.
“Our Serious Collision Investigation Unit are appealing for anyone who may have witnessed this incident to come forward.
“They are also keen to speak to anyone who may have any footage, including CCTV, dashcam or mobile phone footage from the area in the moments leading up to the collision.”
Anyone with details should contact police on 0161 856 4741 quoting log number 2527 of 14/06/2024.
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The new yellow camera and pole have been erected on Whelley, close to Canon Sharples Primary School.
It was the fourth such attack in just a few weeks, with other devices being dramatically disabled on Wallgate, Warrington Road and Spring Road in Kitt Green.
A new speed camera in place on Whelley, after the previous one was cut down
The cameras had only been in place for a short time when they were targeted, replacing older models at locations across the borough.
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The Orrell attack was caught on a CCTV camera and the Warrington Road incident was witnessed, with an onlooker telling police that two men had been involved and were using an angle grinder.
Subsequently a 67-year-old man was arrested on suspicion of criminal damage and was bailed pending further inquiries.
Transport for Greater Manchester’s (TfGM) head of highways Peter Boulton condemned the damage to the cameras at the time and said it would cost £100,000 to replace them.
He said: “We strongly condemn the irresponsible actions of those who have vandalised spot speed safety cameras which have recently been upgraded in Wigan. These cameras are used to stop people speeding, reduce collisions and make our roads safer for everyone that uses them.
“Speeding is a cause in most fatal collisions and in Wigan borough alone 57 people have been needlessly killed or seriously injured between 2020 and 2022 as a result of speeding.
“It is beyond reckless for these people to vandalise these spot speed safety cameras, and I would urge them to consider the potential consequences of there being one less camera on our roads, and how they would feel if the next person killed by someone speeding is a friend, relative or loved one.”
Last autumn it was announced that TfGM had signed a contract with Jenoptik UK to upgrade many cameras across the region, including several sites in Wigan.
The state-of-the-art technology can catch motorists speeding in both directions at the same time, without the need for road markings, and there is no flash either.
A woman has died after being hit by a car on a major road near Wigan[1].
The woman – aged in her 30s – was struck by a Vauxhall Insignia on the East Lancashire Road at around 12.50am this morning (Monday). She was a pedestrian, police said.
She tragica…
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This week the safety device on Wallgate, next to Wigan Pier, was reinstated following a vandal attack on its predecessor at the end of last year.
Already the device filmed on CCTV being disabled by a man wielding an angle grinder on Spring Road, Orrell, around the same time, has been reinstated.
Faces and places: pictures of Miles Lane in Shevington and Appley Bridge spannin…
[2]
A new speed camera has been installed on Wallgate next to Wigan Pier
Cameras on Whelley and Warrington Road more recently came under attack and they too will eventually have replacements, angry transport chiefs saying that the work will cost the taxpayer £100,000.
One man was arrested after the Warrington Road incident on January 6 on suspicion of criminal damage.
The 58-year-old – not a 67-year-old as initially reported by police – remains on bail as investigations and officers confirmed today that no further arrests had been in connection with that incident or the three other crimes.
In the case of the Whelley incident, the felled camera pole collapsed into the main road, a hazard worsened by the fact it is near the brow of a hill and there were wintry conditions at the time.
What some seem to regard as heroic, anti-establishment vigilantism has come under severe attack from both the authorities and residents saying that lives are being put at risk by incidents like the one in Whelley as does the removal of devices designed to protect other road users from people who dangerously break the speed limit.
Police say that 27 per cent of fatal collisions in this country were caused by speeding in 2022, with many more seriously injured for the same reason.
Last autumn it was announced that Transport for Greater Manchester (TfGM) had signed a contract with Jenoptik UK to upgrade many cameras across the region, including several sites in Wigan.
The state-of-the-art technology can catch motorists speeding in both directions at the same time without the need for road markings and there is no flash either.
They have since been installed in many parts of the borough.
Anyone with information on any of the attacks is asked to ring police on 101 or the freephone Crimestoppers line anonymously on 0800 555111.
Crooks from the Wigan area played key criminal roles in a “truly massive” £53m cocaine supply plot which saw huge quantities of the drug transported across England, Wales and Scotland.
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Carlisle Crown Court was told how vast quantities of the illicit substance — generally shipped into the country from overseas into ports and then transported to the Greater Manchester and Liverpool areas — were distributed by criminal couriers to many towns and cities across the British mainland.
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Their destinations included Newcastle and also the south Lakes, where one of the plotters, 31-year-old Reece Barnes, of Elim Grove, of Bowness-on-Windermere, kept the cocaine in a lock-up near his home.
Carlisle Crown Court.
“The quantities of drugs in the overall conspiracy in this case are truly massive,” prosecutor Tim Evans told a crown court jury. “The scope of the overall conspiracy is countrywide. It features Blackpool and the Fylde coast, it features Yorkshire, various places in the Midlands, South Wales and various parts of England, Wales and Scotland.
Evidence pointed to two main criminal players – Andrew Stephens, 41, of East Field Drive, Golborne, and 45-year-old Simon Buller, of Freshfield Avenue, Atherton – moving 232kg between them during an illegal enterprise which ran for almost 15 months, from March 1, 2022, and May 25 last year.
Other people had been involved in the movement of a further 70kg or 80kg, taking the total amount least the 300kg mark.
A total wholesale value of the haul was said to be in the region of £6m, with a police drug expert estimating the street value of cocaine transported during the overall criminal enterprise being somewhere between £35m and £53m.
The focus of detectives was first trained on Cumbria as multiple 1kg shipments were brought into Windermere and three men were arrested brought before Carlisle Crown Court.
The cocaine had been supplied to Barnes, who stored cocaine in the lock-up ahead of onward supply; with Cain Turner, 32, of no fixed address, involved as a “highly active courier”; and Stephen Stockall, 62, of Well Lane, Weaverham, Northwich in Cheshire, a dealer.
“Much of the evidence you will hear in this trial will be to do with the movement of drugs into Windermere,” said Mr Evans.
“Once the police get the first two or three (people) in this case, they can then look at phones, they look at webs of contact that spread out from this, starting in Windermere. It spread out countrywide and blew up massively, quantity-wise.”
Cane Turner; Anthony Warhurst, 58, of Knowsley Street, Leigh; Thomas Whittaker, 45, of Brierfield, Digmoor, Skelmersdale; and Michael Evans, 36, of no fixed address; all seemed to operate as couriers of the drug in “very significant quantities”, said the prosecutor.
A ninth man, Daryll Preston, 36, of Hampson Street, Atherton, had acted as a middle man.
All nine, jurors heard, have admitted conspiring to supply the class A controlled drug.
A 10th man, 33-year-old Scott Owen, of Salisbury Way, Tyldesley, denies that he played any part in the conspiracy. Evidence, said Mr Evans, showed he had been in contact and socialised with some of those who had admitted their guilt.
“Was this defendant (Owen) also playing an active role in the conspiracy?” Mr Evans asked jurors. “He says not. He is having his trial. You decide that.