Anger at 'carnage' as Shropshire A41 crash diversion sends lorries through village

Karen Powell, of Marchamley, near Market Drayton, described the impact of the diversion as "carnage" because of the amount of traffic that was backed up and the fact that large vehicles struggled to pass each other.

The diversion was put in place on the unclassified road through the village towards Hodnet following the crash on the A41 at Sandford, near Whitchurch, on Tuesday evening.

Ms Powell said: "I live on the bend of the road in the middle of Marchamley and it was absolute carnage.

"Two lorries could not pass on the sharp bend and the traffic was backed up as far as the eye could see in both directions.

"Only one large vehicle could negotiate the bend at any time, meaning lorries were having to back up to allow each other through.

"The narrow winding road through these villages were not built to take the enormous lorries using the main highways.

"Surely the most sensible solution, knowing the number of large lorries that use the A41, would have been to close the road at the Prees Heath junction of the A41/A49 and take the traffic down the A49 to the Battlefield roundabout and then back onto the A53 to the Tern Hill roundabout.

"I appreciate it is a lot longer diversion but would surely be quicker than the hold-up the drivers experienced in Marchamley, not to mention negotiating the other sharp bend in the village of Hodnet in order to go through Wollerton and back onto the A53."

A man, who is believed to be in his 20s, suffered multiple injuries after being trapped for about 90 minutes in the wreckage of his car following the collision with a van on the A41, which happened at about 9.15pm on Tuesday.

It caused the road to be closed in both directions between the B5065 junction in Sandford and Tern Hill roundabout for more than nine hours while a fuel spillage caused by the accident was cleared up.

Shropshire Council was unable to comment.