THE A590 was shut in both directions after a van overturned on the road yesterday morning following the announcement of two road safety initiatives being launched this week.

Both carriageways were closed for a short period and a police spokesperson said they were called at 7:30am and that the two vehicles involved were a Ford and an NFD van.

An ambulance and a first responder attended the scene as well as police and non-life threatening injuries were reported.

Officers from the mobile support group (MSG), road safety team (RST) and the serious collision investigation unit (SCIU) will be supporting the two road safety initiatives, ‘One Road, One Week’ and ‘Project Edward’.

One Road, One Week is a national operation from the National Police Chiefs Council (NPCC) aiming to target collision hotspots. Throughout the week officers across the county will be out enforcing on roads identified by collision reduction officers.

Project EDWARD which stands for Every Day Without A Road Death is a project that works with police forces, road safety groups and other great partners to save lives globally. This year’s theme is driving for work.

Inspector Steve Minnikin, from Cumbria’s Road Policing team said: “We continue to work all year round to enforce and educate road users to reduce the number of fatal, or life changing collisions which have a devastating impact on those involved and their family.

“We all have a responsibility when behind the wheel to take steps to reduce the risk to ourselves and other road users.

“Many collisions are made by poor judgement and decisions, a lapse of concentration or ignorance of the risks.

“We will be targeting roads identified by our collision reduction officers as collision hotspots throughout the week of action.”

Cumbria’s Police and Crime Commissioner, Peter McCall, said: “Anti-social driving is one of the biggest concerns raised with me by the public.

“This is why am I so pleased to see the Cumbria Constabulary focussing in on problem areas around the county.”