DRIVE DOWN THE DEALTH TOLL: A COURIER who survived a horror smash on the A36 near Codford is backing the Wiltshire Times Drive Down the Death Toll campaign.

Simon Woodsford, 30, of Drynham Road, Trowbridge, says he is lucky to be alive after his car collided with a tanker on February 20 this year.

Mr Woodsford was returning home after working a night shift at West Country Fine Foods, in Codford, when the crash happened at 6.20am.

After the impact he was unconscious for around 10 minutes and woke up to find fire crews cutting him free.

Although his car was a write off, Mr Woodsford escaped with relatively minor injuries and was in Salisbury District Hospital for two days.

He said: "I still don't know what happened, maybe it was a blow out or maybe I skidded on ice. I've not had any reports back from the police.

"I just spun into the road and the lorry hit me. I was extremely lucky to walk away, it could have so easily been me who died.

"I was definitely knocked out and I had some surgery on my left leg. I had severe bruising all down my chest where I was pressed against the steering wheel.

"I'd like to say a big thank you to all the emergency services who helped me that day. Without people like that I would not have made it through.

"I think the police expected to find a dead body, they seemed very relieved that I was ok.

"When I show the newspaper cuttings to my mates they say how lucky I was to walk away from that. I am one of the lucky ones."

Mr Woodsford says he is right behind our campaign to improve safety on the road.

He said: "If I can do anything to encourage people to slow down and take more care then that has got to be a good thing.

"The road is terrible, that two mile stretch is an absolute nightmare. I had travelled along the road before but I didn't realise how bad it was.

"Obviously people need to stick to the speed limit along there."

Mr Woodsford said that the 'Death Valley' stretch should have warning signs telling drivers how many people have been killed or injured on it.

"I have driven all over the country in my job and those signs do encourage people to slow down.

"Drivers should slow down and pay very good attention to what's going on. People treat the road like it is a motorway.

"It is a case of taking a leap of faith coming out of the junctions in places like Knook.

"I know all about the pressure of trying to get somewhere on time because I'm a courier."

He added: "Since the accident I tend to be a lot more careful. I love driving and I couldn't see myself doing anything else for a living so I had to get back out there on the road."

AN inquest on Codford crash victim, retired army officer Derek Joseph Reilly, was opened at Salisbury on Thursday.

Mr Reilly, 74, of Beverley Hills Park, Amesbury, died when his car was in collision with a lorry on the A36 Salisbury-Bath road last Monday.

Assistant deputy Wiltshire coroner Nigel Brookes heard he had been officially identified by is daughter, Jane Ratten, of Hawkeridge Park, Westbury.

The inquest on Mr Reilly, who served with The King's Regiment, was adjourned until inquiries have been completed.