THE mother of one of the victims of the notorious A66 yesterday reacted with anger to a claim by environmentalists that the road should not be dualled.

The route is one of the most dangerous in Britain and has claimed the lives of 70 people in the past decade.

Following years of campaigning, a Government-commissioned independent study has now concluded that the only long-term answer to the safety problem is to dual the road for its entire length.

However, earlier this week the environmental group Transport 2000 published a report of its own, which claimed dualling the road was financially unjustifiable and that small-scale improvements would suffice.

But yesterday, their views were criticised by Ada Hutchinson, from Meadowfield, County Durham.

Her son, Gary, was killed in an accident on the A66 ten years ago at the age of 25 and her husband, Frank, still uses the road on an almost daily basis.

"Before people come out with views like this, they should speak to those who have lost someone on that road," she said yesterday.

"My husband still has to use it regularly and he saw a bad accident only this week. That road is an absolute death trap.

"Small improvements are certainly not going to be enough to make it safer. Dualling is the only sensible option."

She added: "I think the human cost rather than the environmental cost is what should be taken into account.