Collisions involving horses in Devon have doubled in the last year

The British Horse Society has released figures highlighting that between 2016-2017 and 2017-2018, incidents in Devon rose from 7 to 17, the highest figure in the South West.

These incidents refer to collisions between vehicles and horses, as well as near-misses that have resulted in death, injury or distress to riders or their horses.

Councillor Stuart Hughes, Devon County Council's Cabinet Member for Highways, said: “Devon is a rural county, and it’s not uncommon to see horses being ridden on some of our quieter roads. We have recently introduced Pegasus crossings in Devon, helping to ease the passage of horses across roads where it would be unwise for riders to dismount.

“We’ve also designed bridges for non-vehicular traffic in such a way as to permit horse riders to share the space with cyclists and pedestrians, such as our multi-use bridge over the A38 on the Granite Way near Stover Country Park.

“We ask drivers respectfully to pay heed to the BHS advice about minimising the risk and accidents involving horses. They are slow down to a maximum of 15mph, be patient and do not sound your horn or rev the engine, overtake only when it is safe to do so, ensuring to leave at least a car’s width between the vehicle and the horse and drive away smoothly.”

There are 1.3 million regular riders in the UK, and in total 230 horses and 39 riders have been killed since 2010.