A TAXI driver had to be freed from his vehicle after it collided with a traffic island and overturned.

The emergency services were called to the scene of the accident at New Road in Crook, County Durham, shortly before 4pm this afternoon.

They arrived to find the white Ford Fiesta on its roof in the middle of the road and its driver, a local male, trapped inside.

It is understood the taxi flipped over after colliding with the traffic island close to the junction with Glenholme Drive.

The Great North Air Ambulance Service was also called out and the landed on a grassed area in front of West Durham Youth and Community Centre.

Firefighters had to cut off the vehicle’s doors to free the man who fortunately was not seriously injured.

The air ambulance was not required and the man was taken to the University Hospital of North Durham in Durham City by road ambulance.

New Road was closed in both directions for several hours during and after the incident while the scene was made safe and the recovery truck removed the wreckage.

One nearby resident was alerted to the accident by a large crashing noise and initially thought his dog had got out and been hit by a car.

He said: “It’s not the first time an accident has happened in this spot. A car hit the same island about a year ago and overturned. It's hard to understand how it happened as the island is visible."