A MULTI-million pound scheme to cut crashes on Canvey Way has been dubbed a success - with 483 drivers flouting a reduced speed limit.

The £700,000 Canvey Way scheme was introduced in April 2009 following a number of serious crashes which cost lives and bought south Essex to a standstill.

Part of the scheme also saw a new 50mph speed limit and average speed cameras introduced.

Figures obtained by the Echo from the Essex Safety Camera Partnership, show 483 drivers have been caught ignoring the speed limit and going too fast down the busy trunk road since the cameras were installed.

They also reveal the number of serious accidents plummeted by 86 per cent while the number of slight collisions fell by 83 per cent.

Taxi driver Martin Jones, from Canvey, said: “When there is an accident down Canvey Way the whole area just grinds to a halt. So it’s good if these changes have helped reduce the number of crashes along there.

“And if the speed cameras are helping make people keep to the speed limit then that’s got to be a good thing as well.”

As well as adding average speed cameras, the road was resurfaced with anti-skid material and the closure of lay-bys.

The scheme was put in place following two fatal accidents in 2008.

Wayne Bailey, 24, of Gwendalen Avenue, Canvey, was killed when his Fiesta collided with a lorry in January 2008, causing the road to be closed for seven hours.

A month later David Smith, 61, of Gafzelle Drive, Canvey, lost his life when his Fiesta collided with an Audi.