A CORONER has called for extra safety measures to be introduced along a major link road after the deaths of a former Blackburn man, his wife and daughter.

Liyakat Sidat, 47, was driving back from Leicester when he decided to overtake two cars on the A34 Alderley Edge Bypass in Cheshire, an inquest heard earlier this year.

But his Toyota Yaris was involved in a head-on collision with a minibus on a bend, resulting in Mr Sidat, his wife Salma, 41, and his 14-year-old daughter Hajra losing their lives.

Council bosses say a review of overtaking on the road will now see changes made to the central white lines in March.

Two others in the car, a nine-year-old girl and a 19-year-old girl, also suffered serious injuries in the crash, which happened in the early hours of a Sunday morning.

Several casualties in the minibus also received hospital treatment for their injuries.

The family had been travelling to their Old Trafford home from Leicester at the time.

Jean Harkin, assistant coroner for Cheshire, has now filed a prevention of death report, in a bid to persuade highways bosses to review road safety measures for the route, which links Wilmslow with the A537.

In the coroner’s view, the bypass presents “a danger to life”, with the section in question having no continuous white line to prevent overtaking.

She added: “It is dangerous to overtake on that stretch of road. Witness evidence referred to how dark it was and lives are at risk if overtaking is allowed to continue there.”

Mrs Harkin has also noted that other coroners have previously issued similar reports without any remedial action being taken by Cheshire East Council, the highway authority.

The conclusion in each of the three cases was that they died as the result of a road traffic collision.

Tributes were paid to Mr Sidat, who was the principal of the madressa at the Masjid Bilal, in Bury Old Road, Prestwich, from across the north-west.

Worshippers and his pupils staged a memorial service within 48 hours of his death.

In November 2017 an 85-year-old driver and his 82-year-old passenger lost their lives in a head-on crash on the same road. And in September 2013 an 11-year-old boy died in similar circumstances.

A Cheshire East Council spokesman, said:  "Any road fatality accident is a tragedy. The safety of our road users and residents is of upmost importance to us and we take our regulatory role around road safety provision extremely seriously.

"We always carry out a full and comprehensive assessment following a road fatality in conjunction with the police and put into place any identified mitigating actions, if identified.

"The assessment of the A34 Alderley Edge Bypass (Melrose Way), together with the police, led to the recommendation for the existing hazard centreline marking to be replaced with a hatched hazard centreline marking.

"This will give a visual carriageway narrowing effect and put greater distance between the two -way traffic flow and may heighten driver awareness when considering overtaking manoeuvres. 

"This work is planned to be to be undertaken and will be complete by the end of March 2020."