A417 dual carriageway bid backed by emergency services

A Cheltenham man and two women from Wiltshire were killed in separate crashes on the same day last November

Emergency services are backing a campaign for a dual carriageway to bypass an accident blackspot on the A417 near Gloucester.

The county council wants the three-mile (5km) stretch of road near Birdlip to be added to the Highways Agency's list of road scheme priorities.

Three people were killed on the stretch of road in one day last November.

Gloucestershire Road Safety Partnership said the safety benefits of a dual carriageway were "obvious".

Motorway connections

The partnership - made up from police, fire and ambulance services - said safety on the road has been debated for years.

It is the only section of single carriageway on the route connecting the M4 and the M5.

County council data shows there have been 39 serious injuries and eight deaths there since 1998.

"Improvements to this stretch would bring huge economic and social benefits as it is part of a strategic route and used by about 1,500 vehicles every hour," said Garry Handley, Gloucestershire Road Safety Partnership manager.

In January the county council's campaign to secure funding for the bypass gathered more than 1,000 signatures in one week.