More than £20,000 has been secured to pull together detailed evidence and data to support the push for future dualling of the A1.

More than 50 people have died on the Northumberland stretch of the A1 in the last 20 years and a cross-party group of politicians in the county, backed by business leaders and community groups, want Ministers to look again at the case for dualling to make the road less dangerous.

Council Leader Glen Sanderson (pictured) said: “Although the Council doesn’t own or have responsibility for this road, I have now signed off a new piece of work for our Highways team to revisit the evidence and data so we can show National Highways in the autumn why the Business Case for dualling is now compelling.

“I wrote to the Transport Secretary a few weeks ago and I was very pleased that the Mayor co-signed the letter. The points made are now better understood by National Highways – clearly the safety record and that dangerous and frustrating mix of dual and single carriageway is our key argument.

“But it is also about the capacity of the road now. The congestion we see very regularly is because Northumberland is thriving – our tourist numbers have doubled and we see new attractions and businesses every year.

“The snarl ups also lead to more traffic using the A697 which creates other serious problems. I asked Northumbria Police to deploy the camera van in Longhorsley  and recently there were 25 incidents of speeding. It is a deterrent, but it doesn’t reduce the amount of traffic using that road now.”

“But this isn’t just about data, it’s about people’s lives. On a personal level, I get a lot of letters and emails from people who have suffered as a result of the tragedies on the road. One, from a gentleman who was just seven when the car in which he was travelling was in an accident and his father died in that crash.

“As Leader of the Council I represent the interests of over 300,000 residents in the county and this is not what anyone wants to see. Also all political groups in the County Council unanimously backed this campaign. That is why it must continue.”

(Picture: Northumberland Council)