Police are investigating the cause of a crash in which a motorcyclist died after the motorbike he was riding crashed with a lorry.

Eastern Daily Press: Police at the scene of the fatal crash on the A47 near Scarning on Monday morning. Picture: Matthew Usher.Police at the scene of the fatal crash on the A47 near Scarning on Monday morning. Picture: Matthew Usher. (Image: © ARCHANT NORFOLK 2016)

It took place on the A47 near Scarning, near Dereham, at around 9.30am yesterday and led one of the region's busiest roads to be closed for more than six hours while emergency services looked into why it happened.

The man, whose family has been informed of his death by police, is the first motorcyclist to lose his life on Norfolk's roads in 2016.

The crash site was near to the junction with Drayton Hall Lane and Fen Lane.

The stretch of road has seen a number of accidents over the years including a three-vehicle crash on March 24 this year which resulted in minor injuries.

Eastern Daily Press: The road was closed for several hours. Picture: Matthew Usher.The road was closed for several hours. Picture: Matthew Usher. (Image: © ARCHANT NORFOLK 2016)

Lynda Turner, Breckland councillor for Shipdham with Scarning, said there were concerns about the A47.

She said: 'That stretch is lethal.

'You have got the speed of the traffic down the A47, people trying to get across to the Toftwood road opposite as well as joining the A47.

'I understand that there is some work to be undertaken in times to come on the A47 but I think all we can do at the moment is to say to people to take extra care and not underestimate the speed of vehicles and other people's driving behaviour on the road.'

She added that a traffic survey was under way for Dereham and she hoped the A47 would be included in it.

Of the 70 deaths on Norfolk's roads since 2014, 12 have been motorcyclists.

This is in line with national statistics, which show 19pc of fatalities on the road are motorcyclists – despite them making up just one per cent of road traffic.

Motorbike fatalities have been in the spotlight in Norfolk since the successful David's Story campaign which showed footage of the crash in which biker David Holmes lost his life.

•Would you like to pay tribute to the motorcyclist who died? Email doug.faulkner@archant.co.uk