We live on one of UK’s most notorious streets – 8 of our family cars have been written off…we’re scared someone will die
A FAMILY who live on one of the UK’s most notorious streets have told how they’ve had eight cars written off since they moved to the road.
The Griffiths family live on Chepstow Road, Newport, Wales, where cars regularly crash outside their door.
In recent years 20 cars have been totalled – and nearly half of these have belonged to Andrew Griffiths.
He and other neighbours are begging for speed deterrents, such as speed bumps and rumble strips, to be put in place.
He told WalesOnline: “They are waiting for someone to die before they do anything about it.
“We get no compensation whatsoever. My insurance has gone up and I’ve lost a lot of money. On average every time we get a new car we then lose around £3,000 every time there is an accident.”
The most recent incident on Tuesday saw his daughter’s Ford Fiesta wrecked.
It comes just weeks after he lost his car after someone hit it in the early hours while it was parked outside his home.
He explained: “This time it’s my daughter’s car – a Fiesta. She started working and saved money to buy it.
“It was her first car. She’s had it about a year and she’s still learning to drive in it. It was immaculate, she really looked after it.”
The family had been home at the time of the latest crash.
Andrew said: “I heard a bang but it wasn’t as loud as the others have been so I immediately opened the door and looked down the road.
“But then I saw it was us again, right out the front. My wife gets really stressed over it. I just feel angry.
“We’ve got new neighbours who have moved in in the last month just after the last crash and this car has gone into them as well.”
A spokeswoman for Gwent Police said: “We had a report of a road traffic collision on Chepstow Road in Newport at about 6.35pm yesterday evening.
“It involved a van and two cars. The two cars were parked on the roadside at the time. No-one was injured.
“The van driver did initially stop at the scene, the van was left at the scene, and officers are now making enquiries to trace the driver.”
In March a spokesman for Newport Council said: “The council has received a report of problems along a particular stretch of Chepstow Road.
“As it is a strategic through road, we are not considering any additional traffic calming measures at this time, but we have offered to facilitate a community speed watch scheme for residents.”