LAS makes impact

Nearly 600,000 viewers followed a BBC News live feed about road traffic collisions (RTCs) in London at the beginning of December as journalists reported from the scene of accidents.

Thirteen reporters accompanied paramedics and in cars to see first hand how the London Ambulance Service responds to dozens of collisions across the capital every day.

While the London Ambulance Service tweeted about every RTC to its followers, the BBC kept the live feed up to date. By mid afternoon it was the most popular story on the BBC website and #Crash24 was trending on Twitter.

Deputy Director of Operations, Jason Killens, said: "The impact of these accidents goes largely unreported in London. Crash24 gave us the opportunity to put the spotlight on traffic collisions and the impact they have on road users."

The 24 hour unfolding story of road collisions was also covered by BBC London Radio and on BBC London TV. Journalists interviewed patients who were being treated at the scene by paramedics as well as talking to staff in the control room.

Crash24 was part of a week long special BBC report focusing on road collisions. The BBC has also produced an interactive map, which plots every fatal accident in the UK between 1999 and 2010.