SUNDAY’S fatal collision between a car and two lorries is just the latest in string of accidents to occur along the same stretch of the A420.

During the past five years, 17 accidents have taken place between Buckland Road and the B4508 – a two-mile stretch of road where Sunday’s incident took place.

Although data provided by Oxfordshire County Council shows that 14 of the recorded incidents since 2009 to the end of February this year were slight, there was one fatality in 2012 and two accidents were considered to be serious.

In the early hours of Sunday morning, a man in his 30s, who has yet to be identified, died after his car was in collision with two lorries on the vital commuter link between Swindon and Oxford.

The incident took place at around 3.50am and involved a white Seat Leon car, a white articulated DAF lorry and a white articulated Volvo lorry.

The driver of the Seat was pronounced dead at the scene while a female passenger was rushed to the John Radcliffe Hospital in Oxford, where she continues to receive treatment for her serious injuries.

MP for South Swindon, Robert Buckland, said: “First and foremost it’s a human tragedy and my heart goes out to the family, it must be awful.

“The A420 is a very important road especially for Swindon because of the links between Swindon and the Oxford area.

“It’s an important link road for a lot of commuters and Swindon residents who work in the Oxford area and use that part of the road, and it’s an important road for economic reasons.

“I do think it’s important to check the safety of the road and that there needs to be a safe linking road from Swindon to the Oxford area.

“If the road or a stretch of road needs updating and there is a danger to drivers then it needs to be maintained and I know that Swindon Council and Oxfordshire County Council regularly check and maintain the roads.

“I know that part of the road has been updated over the years.

“It’s a 50 mile per hour speed limit along that road and I think this will serve to remind people of that along that stretch of the A420. If it is not safe then it ill have to be looked at and improved.”

A spokesman for Oxfordshire County Council said: “The council will be carrying out an investigation with Thames Valley Police in due course to try to determine the cause of this accident.”

Anyone with information regarding the collision should contact the Road Death Investigation Unit on Thames Valley Police’s 24-hour non-emergency number 101. Alternatively, you can call Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111 or online at crimestoppers-uk.org