TWO lorry drivers were hospitalised after their vehicles collided on the Haydon Bridge bypass on Sunday evening.

Just before 10.30pm, the lorries were involved in a crash on the A69 just west of the village of Haydon Bridge, resulting in the well-used stretch of road being closed overnight until 4pm the following day.

The lorry drivers, aged 54 and 47, were taken to hospital, but neither had life-threatening injuries.

While the vehicles were recovered from the main road, traffic was diverted through Haydon Bridge which caused chaos to rush hour motorists on Monday morning.

Parking on the main through road, Ratcliffe Road, has long been an issue for local residents, with many saying the problem had escalated recently with vehicles parked on both sides. There has also been the added confusion of a lack of road markings since Northumberland County Council resurfaced the road in the summer.

The problem was magnified with the extra traffic using the road on Monday. Most residents managed to remove their vehicles from one side of the road – but one car remained in situ for most of the day as the owner could not be located.

Ken Tulip, who has a property on the road, said: “There’s only room for one car because of the parking, and the traffic was backed up as far as the eye could see. The parking is a real concern because children run in between cars, and I’m worried they will run out on to the road when a car is coming.”

Eileen Charlton, vice-chairwoman of Haydon Parish Council, said it was working with the county council to alleviate the problem.

She said: “We have a major problem with parking. As our parish grows, it is a huge area to cover but we want people who belong in the parish to be able to get parked in the village. At the end of the day, this was a one-off accident and the extra traffic was accommodated.”

Police are asking any witnesses to get in touch on 101, quoting reference 1220 04/11/18.