MP Ian Liddell-Grainger is giving his support to a new campaign to make Exmoor’s roads safer.

He said increasing traffic levels and higher vehicle speeds are making local roads – already regarded as some of the most hazardous in the country – even more dangerous for local people.

But he also said he is encouraged by the fact that the risks are finally being recognised and that a multi-agency approach is being adopted to reduce them.

His comments follow a road safety roadshow staged by the Exmoor Hill Farming Network on Monday which brought together emergency services, the Somerset Road Safety Partnership, and farming organisations to discuss concerns over the rising toll of death and injury on Exmoor roads.

There have been several fatalities in recent months, including the deaths of a Porlock couple killed in a head-on crash on the A39 at Venniford, near Minehead, last May.

Mr Liddell-Grainger, MP for Bridgwater and West Somerset, said speed was still a factor in far too many accidents: “But in this area, we have the additional hazard of tourists who spend most of their time driving on motorways and fast trunk roads and who arrive on Exmoor totally unprepared for the hazards of a road network which has barely been improved since it was topped with Tarmac.”

He added: “This, taken in combination with the fact that modern cars are capable of frighteningly high speeds, presents a highly dangerous situation and one which is going to have to be tackled by improved driving standards rather than improved roads.”

Mr Liddell-Grainger said there was an urgent need to warn drivers of accident blackspots along routes such as the A39.

“But we also need to get a general message out to visitors that journey times will inevitably be longer on Exmoor simply because of the nature of the roads – and that they need to be really alert when driving in the area.

“As local residents, we also need to respond to the risks and leave plenty of time for our journeys. We may all be familiar with the dangers; the real problems arise when that familiarity turns into complacency.

“We also need the co-operation of all road users if we are going to get our accident rates down and that extends to persuading motorcycle groups to stop urging their members to race along the A39 from Bridgwater to County Gate purely for the thrills it can offer – a reckless attitude which not only encourages riders to put themselves in danger but which can have tragic consequences for others.”