ROADWORKS to improve safety at an accident blackspot in Bishop Auckland will begin soon.

Eldon crossroads, at the junction between Eldon’s Main Road, Eldon Bank and Close House, will undergo major safety enhancements, including improved signage and road markings along with a flashing speed warning.

The work will take place in August.

The measures were decided at a meeting between Durham Police, Durham County Council (DCC) and Eldon Parish Council in January and will be presented to the latter on Tuesday evening at 7pm in Eldon Community Centre. (July 27).

The scheme has been given priority by the county council following the death of Newton Aycliffe motorist Shane Michael Smith who lost control of his father’s Audi at the crossroads in January earlier this year.

A post mortem in June heard that 25 year-old Mr Smith died from a blunt trauma to the heart after a fence post came through the windscreen and hit him in the chest.

The road improvements also follow a recent police investigation, but the blackspot has a long history of collisions.

The Northern Echo reported accidents at the junction in 1992, 1993, 1995, 2002 and 2009 with safety concerns being raised by villagers worried about vehicles going too fast near the nearby children’s playground in 2000.

The area was even named as a high risk site for accidents by safety experts as far back as 1993.

The bulk of the cost of the project will be met by the county council, although some will be paid from the county councillors’ budget and Eldon Parish Council.

Tom Bolton, clerk to Eldon Parish Council, said: “There’s been a longstanding problem at the junction. We’ve worked with Durham County Council and Durham Police. Council officers have now come up with a scheme to improve safety.”

He said that as well as improving unavoidable accidents the scheme should decrease incidents of driver error, with motorists driving too fast down Eldon Bank being seen as an ongoing problem.

Councillor Henry Nicholson, Shildon and Dean Valley division, said: “Hopefully, the improvements will make drivers more aware of their responsibilities and slow down. People are rightly concerned, but we are working in partnership with the police and Eldon Parish Council to improve safety on this stretch of road.”