A SPEEDING motorist was clocked travelling at more than 120mph near an accident blackspot.

The driver was recorded by North Wales Police hurtling down the A5 at Halton, near Chirk, at 121mph – more than twice the 60mph limit on the stretch of road.

The shocking speed was only slightly lower than Wales’ worst speeder in 2014, who was clocked by officers doing 136mph on the A5 between Ty Nant and Dinmael Road in Conwy.

The stretch of the A5 near Chirk has been the scene of several serious accidents in recent years and earlier this month the Government announced it was exploring the possibility of turning a 20-mile stretch of the road – from Montford Bridge, near Shrewsbury to Ruabon – into a dual carriageway in both directions.

Chirk councillor Ian Roberts renewed calls for improvements to the road and said it needed to be done before more people were injured, or worse.

He said: “When you look at speeds like that it is no wonder we have had so many bad accidents on that stretch of road. 

“The sooner it is transformed the better. 

“We have been fighting for this road to be dualled for goodness knows how many years – since before it was built.

“We said originally it needed to be a dual carriageway and traffic on the road has increased tenfold since then. Currently there are about 37,000 traffic movements a day.”

The road has seen a number of serious accidents and fatalities over the years.

In March, 2010, two men – Stuart Davies and William Thomas Hefin Jones – died when a cattle lorry and a car were involved in a collision.

Earlier this year the driver of a tractor came within inches of plunging more than 100ft from a bridge after a crash slightly further south along the A5 at Gledrid.

Three of the four drivers to top 120mph last year were in North Wales on the A5. A third speeding driver was recorded at 122mph on the Ty Nant–Cerrigydrudion stretch on the A5 in Conwy.

The figures were revealed under a Freedom of Information Act request submitted by the Institute of Advanced Motorists (IAM).

The charity made the request to the four Welsh police forces, asking for details of their top five instances of excessive speeding captured on safety cameras on their roads in 2014.

IAM chief executive officer Sarah Sillars said: “Those guilty of this level of excessive speeding are clearly not being deterred by a short ban or fine.

“Their minds need to be concentrated to appreciate that they are putting other road users in significant danger by acting in this way.

“It is crucial that drivers and riders receive continuous development.”