One arrest after A19 four-vehicle crash causes five-mile tailback and 85-minute delays

The collision took place just after 7am, between the A182 Murton sliproad and the A1018 Seaton sliproad

11:50, 14 Jan 2026

Long delays remain after the collision on the A19 Northbound in County Durham(Image: Chronicle Live)

A four-vehicle crash on the A19 Northbound[1] in County Durham[2] has resulted in one arrest[3] and major traffic[4] disruption and delays. Just after 7am, the collision took place, between the A182 Murton sliproad and the A1018 Seaton sliproad.

Initially, Durham Constabulary[5] put a post on social media confirming the road closure as a result of this incident. The message read as follows: "Due to an RTC, the A19 Northbound at Murton is currently closed".

At the height of the delays, before the vehicles were recovered, the National Highways North East account on X posted this: "1 lane (of 2) remains closed on the A19 northbound in County Durham between the A182 and the A1018 near Seaham due to a collision, with recovery now being arranged.

There's now an 85 minute delay on approach with 5 miles of congestion".

When a Chronicle Live photographer arrived at the scene, two vehicles, a silver van and a white car, could be seen on major road after colliding, with obvious damage visible.

Now, after the incident has been resolved and the traffic is back to normal, police have confirmed that a man has been arrested on suspicion of drink driving, and that he is still in custody at this time.

Long delays after the collision on the A19 Northbound in County Durham(Image: Chronicle Live)

A Durham Constabulary spokesperson said: "Officers attended a collision involving four vehicles on the A19 at around 7.10am this morning (January 14). The collision took place just north of the Murton sliproad on the northbound carriageway.

"There were no serious injuries, however the road was blocked while the incident was dealt with. One man has been arrested on suspicion of drink driving and remains in police custody".

The North East Ambulance Service[6] also confirmed that police cancelled the ambulance due to no serious injuries being sustained by anyone involved.

For the latest updates on this incident, and to see how the story unfolded, you can visit our dedicated live blog here.[7]

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References

1. ^ A19 Northbound (www.chroniclelive.co.uk)
2. ^ County Durham (www.chroniclelive.co.uk)
3. ^ arrest (www.chroniclelive.co.uk)
4. ^ traffic (www.chroniclelive.co.uk)
5. ^ Durham Constabulary (www.chroniclelive.co.uk)
6. ^ North East Ambulance Service (www.chroniclelive.co.uk)
7. ^ here. (www.chroniclelive.co.uk)
8. ^ sign up to receive it here (www.chroniclelive.co.uk)
9. ^ Join our Breaking News and Top Stories WhatsApp community (chat.whatsapp.com)
10. ^ privacy notice (www.reachplc.com)
11. ^ CLICK HERE TO JOIN (chat.whatsapp.com)