RESIDENTS living alongside the A39 between Porlock and Minehead have renewed calls for safety improvements after a motorist was killed and the road closed for more than six hours following a serious accident on Friday evening. Taunton man Joseph Lanfranchi, aged 50, died in Musgrove Park Hospital on Sunday afternoon after his Ford Fiesta overturned at Headon Cross. Police said no other vehicles were involved in the accident and Mr Lanfranchi's car appeared to have hit an embankment as he tried to negotiate a left- hand bend. Now residents are calling on highways officials to act before someone else loses their life. Peter Bate, who first contacted the Free Press last May to call for road safety improvements on the 60mph stretch of road, said residents' worst fears had, unfortunately, been realised. He said: "We forecast that this was going to happen and we are very sorry that it has ended with someone losing their life. "Some roads are inherently dangerous and this stretch of the A39 is one of them. "I feel the authorities must take some blame for this as the accident was foreseeable - it is a dangerous road." Emergency services were called to the crossroads on the Porlock side of Bratton Straight just after 7.30pm on Friday. They found Mr Lanfranchi's blue Fiesta had "rebounded" onto the road after hitting an embankment. He was taken to hospital with critical injuries. Police gave no details as to the condition of his passenger. The road was closed for more than six hours as experts examined the crash scene. Officers are appealing for witnesses, particularly the occupants of a second vehicle which they believe was travelling in the same direction but a little ahead of the Fiesta. While there is no indication as to what caused Friday's accident at this stage, people living alongside the A39 have repeatedly called for double white lines and lower speed limits along the stretch between Minehead and Porlock. But highways chiefs have consistently warned them the road is unlikely to be prioritised for funding for a safety scheme.