SLOW down and take care.

That's the message to drivers following a spate of crashes at a village pub near Christchurch.

Four accidents in a month outside the Woolpack Inn in Sopley have prompted fears that someone could be killed.

Motorists have ploughed into a bridge and fencing in the last few weeks and there have also been serious incidents there dating back to October 2014.

The village is on the B3347 between Christchurch and Ringwood, which has seen a huge rise in vehicle numbers since roadworks started on the A338 Spur Road.

Drivers have been using the route from the Avon Causeway as a way of avoiding the Spur Road to get to Christchurch and Ringwood.

Now Teela Liberty-Spark, co-owner of the Woolpack, has decided to speak out.

She has seen vehicles crash into a bridge outside the pub and fencing, lighting and landscaping in the grounds have been wrecked.

"This is a village with no street lighting and drivers are just not seeing the junction until it is too late" she said.

"They are unfamiliar with the road and are going too fast. I am a member of the parish council and we will be contacting highways authorities to see if we can do something about it."

Teela said the bridge was destroyed in October 2014 and was re-built in February this year. Since then it has been struck again.

She said traffic has increased dramatically as commuters attempt to avoid long delays on the Spur Road. Works on the Spur Road are due to continue until June next year.

Most of the accidents involve cars travelling from Christchurch towards Ringwood.