A ROAD dubbed the most dangerous in Britain claimed its latest victim yesterday.

A tractor driver died from his injuries after his vehicle and a lorry collided on the road at Bank's Gate, two miles east of Brough, near the Durham/Cumbria border.

The accident happened on the westbound carriageway of the road at 4.30pm yesterday.

The wagon overturned and the male driver was thrown clear. He suffered shoulder, arm and minor head injuries, which are not life-threatening.

The Great North Air Ambulance was called from Blyth to transfer him to Carlisle Infirmary.

The westbound carriageway of the A66, which is dualled at that point, was closed to traffic last night.

Earlier this year, the Government finally pledged to upgrade the A66 after years of accidents.

Campaigners, angered at its appalling safety record, have been pressing for the road to be fully upgraded to dual carriageway for several years.

The Northern Echo has been at the forefront of a campaign to Fix The A66, to make it a dual carriageway between Scotch Corner and Penrith.

In a statement in August, Transport Minister John Spellar said work costing £141m would take place on the notorious 50-mile stretch.

There are to be three separate improvement schemes, beginning in 2004. But there are doubts over how long the project will take to complete, with predictions ranging from 15 to 20 years.

The A66 between Scotch Corner and Penrith has claimed about 70 lives in more than a decade.

Recent Government research suggested that without full dualling, it could claim another 20 lives in the next 30 years, with 139 people being seriously injured.