Traffic calming measures, including four high-visibility speed cameras, have helped to tame a notorious Bradford accident blackspot.

There have been no deaths or serious injuries on Thornton Road this year since safety measures were introduced and the cameras were switched on.

Five people were killed on the one-and-a-half mile stretch of road in the two years before the safety measures were introduced last May.

The speed limit was cut from 40mph to 30mph and four Gatso cameras, housed in yellow boxes on top of grey pillars, were switched on in March.

In 2000 four people were seriously injured and in 2001 there were 11 serious injuries.

But last year there was only one serious injury on the road and so far this year there have been none.

Less serious casualties have also been slashed from 43 in 2001 and 11 last year to just two so far this year.

The Telegraph & Argus reported in May how a number of drivers for bus company First had been caught by the cameras exceeding the speed limit on the stretch of road.

But Steve Thornton, a principal traffic engineer with Bradford Council and chairman of the West Yorkshire Casualty Reduction Partnership, said drivers were taking heed of the cameras and driving more carefully.

"We'd like to congratulate all those motorists who use Thornton Road, especially those who commute every day, for making such a huge improvement to what was a casualty hotspot," he said. "Travelling at excess speed is the factor behind a third of all deaths and injuries on local roads."

Other safety measures include a double mini-roundabout across the junction of Thornton Road, Chat Hill Road and School Green as part of the scheme to cut speeds, improve safety and reduce the numbers of vehicles using side-streets.

The 30mph limit continues from the junction of Thornton Road with Charteris Road and extends past Thornton Grammar School with Green Lane in Thornton village.