Five deaths on county’s danger road

THE dangers of the 60mph road where the Duke of Edinburgh crashed are to be discussed by Norfolk county councillors today.

The A149 is an accident blackspot – with the high speed limit and the road’s design blamed for a series of crashes, some of them fatal.

In the six years to May 018 there were 40 injury accidents on the A149, five of which resulted in deaths.

County council officers, who blame speeding motorists, are proposing to install speed cameras.

But Sandringham Parish Council chairman Ben Colson said local councillors believe that junction designs are to blame.

‘It has a bad accident record,’ he said last night. ‘There are conflicting views as to what the causes of that are.

‘My personal view is that the high accident rate in the area generally arises from the junction design more than it does from speeds because often the roads are heavily congested and it’s impossible to do 60mph anyway.’

Mr Colson said the 15 miles between King’s Lynn and Hunstanton was the most dangerous stretch of the road.

Describing the spot where Prince Philip’s car overturned, he added: ‘At that point, as you’re coming north from the King’s Lynn direction, you’re coming from a wider stretch of road on to a narrower stretch. It’s a dangerous stretch of road.’

The council officers’ recommendation to today’s meeting of the county’s environment, development and transport committee include reducing the speed limit to 50mph and installing average speed cameras at a total cost of around £50,000.