ASSEMBLY Member Mike German has called for an urgent review of bypass plans for Chepstow following a serious accident on the A48.

The South Wales East AM says the town's busy main road is one of the worst traffic blackspots in the region, and is calling on the National Assembly to urgently review the case for a bypass.

And members of Chepstow's Friends of the Earth group will hold a public meeting in September to discuss the traffic problems on the A48.

Concerns about the A48 and traffic problems in Chepstow were raised again two weeks ago following a crash on Hardwick Hill which left two motorists injured and brought the town to a standstill with traffic tailbacks.

Local people say it is the fifth accident this year and fear the traffic problems could lead to a fatality.

The road is one of the main thoroughfares between Gloucester and Newport, but it is on a hill and limited by a sharp bend.

The junction into Bulwark is also heavily used and is a major frustration to drivers going in and out of the area.

Mr German said: "I have asked the minister for transport in the National Assembly to urgently reconsider the case for a bypass for Chepstow.

"People's lives are increasingly being put at risk, and the economic development of Chepstow town itself is threatened.

"The Welsh government must tell us what they are going to do. "Handing the road over to Monmouthshire county council is not the answer." Friends of the Earth have called for tolls to be installed on the A48 and for the number of lorries using the road to be reduced.