TWO accidents on a busy roundabout on a city's main through road caused rush hour chaos today.

The first collision involved a motorcycle and a taxi on the Leazes Bowl roundabout, on the A690 in Durham city centre, shortly before 9am.

An ambulance attended the scene and ferried the 59-year-old male motorcyclist, from Esh Winning, County Durham, to the nearby University Hospital of North Durham, for treatment for injuries to his left knee.

The driver of the taxi, a Volkswagen vehicle, is not believed to have suffered injury.

A second collision in the same area caused further problems minutes later and a second ambulance was dispatched to the scene.

It led to the development of significant tailbacks in either direction on both sides of the city centre, affecting traffic heading into and out of the city, as emergency services dealt with the accident scene.