MOTORISTS fear another serious accident on the A127 after spotting horses and traps travelling in rush-hour traffic.

Two people were injured and three horses died during a day of chaos on the busy dual-carriageway two weekends ago.

Dave Waters, 36, from Southend, was shocked to spot horse and traps travelling down the A127 as he made his way home from work in Wickford just days after the accident.

He said: “I was really surprised to see them, especially after there was a major accident on the same road just days earlier.

“Horses can be volatile and bolt out of anywhere, so it’s very worrying. It certainly makes you feel a bit uneasy when you spot them.

“I don’t think they should be allowed on the roads. I understand it in rural areas, but horses and traps going down a busy main road during rush hour is just not acceptable. The owners must know horses got killed and people were hurt, but they just don’t seem to care.

“If the cars in front didn’t have their hazard lights on, warning other drivers, there could have been another crash and next time it could be a person who ends up dead.”

Another motorist, who did not want to be named, called on highways bosses to crack down on horse owners who put lives at risk.

She said: “Surely the police and council can work together to show this isn’t acceptable.

Just giving people a warning for such reckless behaviour isn’t enough. I don’t have a problem with horses which are being properly taken care of using quieter roads, but seeing an animal that big galloping on a busy dual carriageway must be terrifying.”

On Saturday, September 14, the first serious accident took place near Pound Lane, Wickford, about 6.15am, leaving a man with serious head injuries and two horses dead.

It was so distressing, police advised witnesses to seek counselling.

Fourteen hours later, at the Nevendon junction – just four miles from the first crash – a woman had to be freed from a Renault Megane after it hit and killed a roaming horse.

It is thought the animals escaped from a field used by Hovefields travellers, but police investigating the first crash are still waiting for the owners to come forward.

A spokesman for Essex County Council said: “A landowner who keeps horses on their premises adjacent to a road has a duty of care to secure the boundaries of the property and has to take all reasonable measures to ensure this.”

Horse-drawn vehicles are legally allowed on dual carriageways, but should follow Department for Transport safety guidelines.