A MOTORIST was cut free from his car by firefighters after it left a road and hit a tree today (Friday May 3).

The 45-year-old man, from Consett, County Durham, escaped with minor injuries as a result of the collision, on the A691 near the Red Tiles roundabout between Langley Park and Witton Gilbert, west of Durham.

His black Mazda 3 left the eastbound side of the road and struck the tree shortly before 7.50am.

It led to tailbacks of morning commuters until the debris was removed and the road, the main route between Consett and Durham, fully reopened to two-way flow of traffic by 8.45am.