A CORONER has called for a road junction to be sealed off following the deaths of a motorcyclist and his pillion passenger.

The accident happened when the bike and a minibus collided at the junction of Beacon Lane and Stockton Road, on the A689 at Sedgefield, County Durham, on September 5, last year.

After recording verdicts of accidental death, Teesside Coroner Michael Sheffield said he intended to write to Durham County Council expressing concern about the number of accidents on the dual carriageway since alterations were made last year, when one of the lanes was narrowed.

He said: "My first recommendation is to consider, if balancing the safety aspect against the convenience of road users, whether the junction could be sealed off."

The council's strategic transport team is investigating the junction, but in a letter read out following the inquest, its area traffic manager said it was normal practice to record crash statistics for three years before any conclusions could be drawn.

Mr Sheffield also recommends in his letter that this time period is shortened in light of the nine recorded accidents between the date the alterations were completed and May this year.

The inquest, at Teesside Coroner's Court, heard that motorcyclist James Cooper, 20, of Thames Road, Billingham, Teesside, died in the James Cook University Hospital, Middlesbrough, three weeks after the collision due to respiratory difficulties as a result of chest injuries.

His pillion passenger, Elizabeth Munt, also 20 and from Billingham, died in the University Hospital of North Tees, in Hartlepool, three days after the accident after suffering head injuries.

Minibus driver David Cook, from Fishburn, County Durham, and his three passengers all suffered shock.

When interviewed by police, Mr Cook said he did not see the bike coming.

"As I stopped spinning, that was when I noticed the bike on the floor," he said.

Forensic accident investigator Graham Greatrix said the estimated speed of the high performance Yamaha bike at the point of impact was between 60 and 65mph.

"If the bike was travelling at maximum performance, it could have been just out of sight," he said.

Mr Cook is due to appear before Bishop Auckland Magistrates' Court in December charged with driving without due care and attention, and failing to give way.