Nottingham Express Transit (NET) is raising awareness of the true impact of a number of road traffic collisions involving motorists in recent months, with a fresh appeal for motorists to be mindful when driving within the city.
The new insights which aim to shine a light on the true cost of a crash – both financial, operational and emotional – revealed that the typical cost of a single road traffic collision incident can exceed £100,000, with its largest incident to date costing more than half a million pounds.
The awareness campaign comes in response to a rising trend of road traffic collisions involving motorists across Nottingham’s tram network, with incidents increasing by 19% in 2025. Between January and October 2025, NET also reported that 205 emergency brake activations took place to avoid motorists, with many of these happening due to drivers running a red light.
Exclusive accounts from three tram drivers who experienced a collision have also been shared, showing how the true cost of a crash goes far beyond the financial and operational consequences.
One driver commented on the far-reaching effects of one split second decision: “There is nothing that could have prepared me for my incident. I never thought I would see someone run a red light all to gain a few seconds. I can still see the incident in slow motion. Hundreds of people place their trust in you daily. That trust can be broken in a split second because of someone else’s actions.”
Another driver’s trust in himself was affected after being involved in an accident: “Having an incident that isn’t my fault has made me question if I am good enough for this job. Having a car pass a red light and into the side of my tram has really knocked my confidence.”
While each driver is offered targeted support following a crash, the emotional impact of these collisions is clear, as one driver said: “Put simply, I am not the same person I was before my collision. I have been fortunate enough to continue my role as a tram driver, however I live in constant fear of the same situation happening again. After my incident the only thing I wanted to do was go home and see my children. People often forget we are humans, not robots.”
When a collision causes damage, tram cabs are then taken out of service for repair, with some repairs so complex they can take up to two years to complete. This directly impacts the number of trams available for service, leading to unavoidable delays that last far beyond the disruption caused on the day of the incident. Last summer the impact of this was felt, as NET implemented an emergency timetable to enable the network to maintain a consistent service with fewer trams, following a spate of collisions that caused damage.
Connor Hardy, Quality, Health, Safety and Environmental manager at NET, shares how this goes on to impact NET’s operations, affecting thousands of other passengers as a result.
He said: “Every collision between a road vehicle and a tram on our network has serious consequences far beyond the moment of impact, which puts strain on our infrastructure and ultimately, affects our ability to keep more passengers moving.
“If car drivers ignore traffic lights, enter restricted tram lanes or misjudge tram movements, and it results in a collision, it causes immediate service disruption. This affects thousands of passengers, both those on that tram and those wanting to use the network that day, ruining their day while reducing our fare revenue – an essential source of income to keep the network running. Add to this, the costs accumulated through engineering resources and replacement bus services, as well as repair work to the trams, highway infrastructure and overhead lines, together with lost driver time and the emotional impact on them, and this can all affect our operations for weeks beyond the day of the incident.
“Every avoidable collision carries a major operational and economic impact for the entire network and city. We’re hoping to raise awareness of the issue to help reverse the trend. By thinking twice before rushing and being alert on the road, motorists can help to keep their journeys – and those of others – safe and incident free, whilst also supporting a service that thousands depend on every day for work, study and leisure.”
For more information about tram safety visit https://www.thetram.net/tram-safety