THE deaths of a pregnant woman and her husband in a car crash prompted calls for improvements to a road last night

Suzie Baldwin, who was expecting her first child, and husband Adrian, were killed after their pick-up vehicle was involved in a head-on collision with a lorry on Saturday morning.

Mrs Baldwin, a 29-year-old air hostess, and Mr Baldwin, 34, of Romanby, near Northallerton, North Yorkshire, had been travelling towards Darlington on the A167 road, near Hurworth Place.

Durham Police accident investigation unit and highway engineers are carrying out an inquiry into how the tragedy occurred.

The stretch of the A167 between Darlington and Thirsk has claimed at least nine lives in the past seven years.

Hurworth parish and Darlington Borough councillor Peter Foster has been campaigning to have a reduced speed limit imposed on the road following the death of Nicola Constantine in 1999.

He said: "I will be approaching the council again following this accident. It won't bring these people back but it may stop another death. It is a dangerous road because it has so many bends. People overtake when they think the road is clear, but they can't see around the corners.

"A 40mph speed limit would bring the amount of speeding down and we would be well on the way to reducing the number of deaths.

"I am horrified every time there is another accident and that is why I campaign for better road safety."

A spokeswoman for Darlington Borough Council said the road conformed to national standards laid down by the Department of Transport.

She said: "It is too early to say what caused this accident.

"With any fatality the police will investigate and when that is completed we will get together with officers and see if there are any issues that need to be addressed."

Work colleagues of Mrs Baldwin, who worked for Airtours, at Teesside and Newcastle airports, paid tribute last night.

A spokeswoman for Airtours said: "Suzie was a very popular member of our team. Our heartfelt sympathies go out to her family and friends."