Ice causes string of crashes

Although all major roads have been gritted, the cold weather has led to several accidents during this morning’s rush hour.

Police are now advising all motorists to take extra caution on their journeys, with patches of black ice making for treacherous driving conditions.

“It looks as though the roads have been gritted, but as the temperature has gone down to minus six, there are still problems,” said a police spokesman.

“In many cases it seems motorists have lost traction and slipped off the road. Even though the roads may look clear, there are still patches of black ice around.”

Police have been called to deal with numerous incidents on the county’s main roads, but most problems have been experienced on or near motorways.

A female motorist had a lucky escape when her Ford Focus skidded off the roundabout at Junction 5 of the M27, for Eastleigh.

The car ended up on its side in a ditch after the incident, at around 8.30am, but the driver did not suffer any injuries.

Police called for gritters to return to the scene, after a patch of ice was discovered.

The M3 has also been the scene of several minor incidents as a result of icy conditions.

Although no-one has been seriously injured, there has been serious disruption to traffic as emergency services clear the scenes.

Two vehicles were involved in a crash at Junction 9, at Winchester, just after 7am.

Gritters were again called in after one vehicle spun 180 degrees and the other hit the crash barrier.

Near the same spot, another car slipped on black ice at 8.35am and ended up on the embankment.

A BMW car also skidded on the Junction 9 slip road, ending up at right angles to the traffic.

At 7.20am there was a three-vehicle smash on the northbound M3 just before Junction 13, at Eastleigh.

The incident left debris lying across all three lanes, blocking two, shortly after the spot where the carriageways from the M27 merge together.