RESIDENTS living alongside the A68 in Northumberland are calling for the speed limit on the road to be reduced to avoid “another fatality”.

A total of 81 residents signed a petition raising concerns about road safety on the A68 between the junction with the B6318 and the C225 at Bingfield.

A report prepared by Northumberland County Council identified there had been nine 'personal injury collisions' on the road since January 1 2018.

However, since that report was written, a 57-year-old man was killed on the road near Bingfield after his car collided with a heavy goods vehicle.

Speaking at Tuesday’s meeting (May 21) of the Tynedale Local Area Committee, lead petitioner Michael Candlish urged councillors to back calls for a reduction in the speed limit to 40mph.

READ MORE: 'Incredibly serious crash' on rural road leaves two in critical condition

He said: “We’re talking about people who have to experience this road on a daily basis. The people that have to take their kids to school via it, do their shopping via it, and the farmers on slow-moving tractors.

“We think two fatalities on that road is unacceptable. For me, if we don’t do anything this is the scenario waiting to happen – another fatality.

“We totally accept that the A68 is the main artery route to the borders. What we don’t accept is that it is a normal road.

“Surely a normal road speed limit of 60mph is not appropriate to the A68. We have peaks, bends and dips that are not acceptable for a 60mph road.”

The council’s highways officer Neil Snowdon explained the council would have to wait for more information from the police on the latest incident before proceeding.

He said: “You talk about the tragic recent fatality on there. We don’t have any information yet so it is difficult to comment on those matters as we don’t know the causes.

“You talk about dangerous driving behaviour – it’s very difficult to do anything about that. You can report it to the police – with dashcam footage, police can investigate further.”

Mr Snowdon also said that road safety work had been carried out in March 2022 on the stretch of road in question, with just two collisions taking place since then. Councillors were broadly supportive of a potential reduction in the speed limit.

Green Party councillor Nick Morphet, who represents much of the area in question, said: “I certainly agree with the lead petitioner that it is a really, really dangerous stretch of road. I have to cycle on it regularly and it’s no fun at all.

“Anything that makes it safer for motorists will also make it safer for cyclists and I would appreciate that. My personal feeling is that the signage and lines are good enough already – we need to go further and reduce the speed limit.

“My preference is for a 50mph limit. It seems more realistic to me – it’s not going to interfere with traffic flow but it will significantly increase safety on that stretch of road.”