A CAR driver who did a U-turn in front a bus in County Durham has died from injuries he suffered after the vehicles collided.

The 60-year-old victim from the Hartlepool area, who has not been named, was driving a silver Citroen c4, on the B1280 at Sheraton when the collision took place with a single-decker bus at about 5.35pm yesterday afternoon (THURS), just 500m from the A19 flyover.

A spokesman for Durham Police said: “Both vehicles were heading west with the car ahead of the Arriva bus. It is thought the car driver, a man aged 60 from the Hartlepool carried out a U-turn in front of the bus which resulted in the vehicles colliding heavily with each other.

“As a result the driver suffered serious injuries and was taken by air ambulance to James Cook University Hospital in Middlesbrough where a short time later he died from his injuries.

“The bus driver, a man in his 50s from Crook, was not  injured,” he added.

“There were several passengers on board but none were seriously hurt.”

The road was closed to traffic until 11pm last night.

Any witnesses are asked to contact the force’s collision investigation unit by calling 0191-3752159.