VOLUNTEERS at the world's oldest working railway are warning of a potential disaster after a car crashed through a barrier and landed on a track - for the fourth time in a month.

The operators of Tanfield Railway have called for 40mph speed limit along a treacherous stretch of road after a motorist escaped serious injury when he lost control of his Porsche - just days after fencing contractors had repaired it following a previous crash.

All the accidents have happened at the same place on the A6076, between Stanley, in County Durham, and Sunniside, Gateshead.

The Tanfield Railway runs trains on Sundays, Wednesdays and Thursdays and bank holidays and operators fear a disaster if a car hits a steam locomotive.

Operations manager Alan Thompson said yesterday: "The driver was extremely lucky to escape with what I understand are relatively minor injuries.

"A wooden post went through his windscreen, only just missing him. If there had been a passenger in the car, that person would most certainly have been killed."

Mr Thompson added: "Had the accident happened 24 hours earlier, the driver could have collided with a steam train."

In the previous accident, a woman was taken to hospital for a precautionary check after her car left the road on Friday, July 29.

The VW Lupo crashed through a wooden barrier and crossed the railway line before landing on its side.

The accident came only days after a 24-year-old man from the Durham City area, driving a Ford Focus, crashed at the same stretch.

He was cut free from the vehicle by firefighters from the Durham brigade before being taken to Gateshead's Queen Elizabeth Hospital, suffering serious multiple injuries. The Friday before that, a driver was unhurt when he crashed there.

Mr Thompson said: "It is baffling why there have been so many accidents on this stretch of road.

"It is possibly because the road dips between two fast stretches. The road is also used by more traffic now because motorists go along it to avoid the busy Western bypass."

Mr Thompson - who has called for a 40mph speed limit along the entire stretch of road - said talks had already been held with the neighbouring Gateshead Council and Durham County Council.

He said: "We fear a motorist may crash through the barrier just as a train is passing, which would be catastrophic."

The acting head of transport strategy at Gateshead Council, David Leeder, said: "We are working with the police and Durham County Council to ensure the safety of drivers, pedestrians and Tanfield Railway following a series of recent incidents.

"We have agreed to erect some warning signs and are currently investigating the road's surfacing to try and identify why accidents are happening there."