THE tragic death of a motorcyclist has prompted calls for safety measures on a ‘dangerous’ Dorset road.

A 26-year-old man, who police said came from the Dorchester area, was riding his Suzuki motorcycle on the A357 near Shillingstone between Blandford and Sturminster Newton, when he was involved in a collision with a car.

He died at the scene of the accident. The cause of the crash is not known and police have begun an investigation.

However villagers have been campaigning for safety measures on the stretch of road for several years.

Police said the motorcyclist was heading north on the road when he was in collision with a Rover car coming the other way near the turning for Child Okeford, about a mile outside Shillingstone, on Friday afternoon.

The car driver, a woman aged 30 from the Sturminster Newton area, suffered severe shock and was taken to Dorset County Hospital in Dorchester for treatment.

The road was closed for several hours while the scene was examined.

A woman who lives near the scene but did not want to be named told how she saw the Dorset and Somerset Air Ambulance land in a field after the crash.

She said: “I was caught up in traffic near the scene of the accident and it must have been just a few minutes after it happened because the police hadn’t closed the road then.

“I didn’t know until later that a man had died. It’s awful.”

The woman said there had been a number of crashes on the road including a fatal collision involving a motorcyclist near the same spot four years ago.

A coroner recorded a verdict of accidental death after hearing the Wiltshire man had crossed the central lane and collided head-on with a Jaguar car.

There are a number of sharp bends on the stretch of road, which has a 60mph limit. The speed limit is reduced through villages.

North Dorset district councillor for the area Deborah Croney called the latest accident ‘a great tragedy’.

She added: “Any action to reduce the speed limit on the road and improve safety, knowing how dangerous the bends are, would get a positive response.”

Coun Croney said the A357 between Blandford and Henstridge was under review by Dorset County Council.

Annette Ashford, a partner in the Shillingstone firm Dee Jays Motor Sales Ltd, said: “I call it the worst stretch of road in Dorset.

“There are always accidents along there.”

Chairman of Shillingstone Parish Council Bob Yorath said: “It has been the view of the parish council for many years the speed limit should be reduced in that area.

“There are a number of blind and sharp bends and I wouldn’t say you take your life in your hands but it’s pushing it.”

Police are appealing for witnesses to the collision, which happened just after 12.30pm on Friday.

Anyone with information can contact PC Gareth Blaken of the road policing unit at Dorchester on 01305 222222.