Coroner brands A1 the weakest link after inquest

Nov 26 2009 by David Black, The Journal

That accident happened when the Dutch driver of the lorry, Klaas Rehorst, pulled out as he approached a bend to overtake a 90-tonne mobile crane and ploughed into Mr Gair’s Vauxhall Vectra.

Yesterday Mr Brown said the common factor in both accidents was that one of the drivers involved had travelled a long distance from outside the area and was less familiar with the standard of the A1 in Northumberland.

He said while most of the A1 from London to Edinburgh was dual carriageway or motorway, the section between Morpeth and Berwick alternated between dual and single carriageway. This made some visiting drivers behave as though they were on continuous dualled road.

“The road is clearly the weakest link between London and Edinburgh,” he said. “The alarming aspect is that because north Northumberland has a lower population than other areas, the A1 has not received a high priority for upgrading to dual carriageway. There are bound to be more preventable deaths of this kind if this continues to be the case.”

Mr Brown said he would write to the Highways Agency, pointing out the circumstances of both recent inquests and asking what steps it can take to prevent similar deaths.

“I sincerely hope that something substantial will be done to upgrade the A1 trunk road to recognise the safety hazard it currently presents,” he added.

Yesterday’s inquest heard from witness Jayne Strong from Alnwick, who was driving south behind Mr Thompson. She said that when she saw Mr Clarkson’s van suddenly appear in front of them she thought “what on earth is he doing?”

Last night a Highways Agency spokeswoman said:“We understand that the coroner is writing to the agency about the tragic fatal accident in February 2009 and we will, of course, respond to him directly on any issues raised.

“We would like to offer our continued sympathy to the family and friends of those who died as a result of the accident. Safety is our priority and we work hard to manage the motorways and trunk roads to keep them safe and serviceable for all road users.”

Verdicts: accidental death.