A MOTORCYCLIST has been seriously injured in a crash with a lorry near Tadcaster.

The man, said to be in his late thirties and from the Wetherby area, was left pinned underneath his Kawasaki ZZR600 bike and the 7.5-ton wagon following the collision on the A659 between Boston Spa and Tadcaster.

Paramedics were called to treat the man as firefighters worked to free him. He was released and taken to hospital.

Police said the biker had been heading for Tadcaster and the blue Leyland DAF wagon had been entering the A659 from the Newton Kyme junction when the crash happened at about 7.45 last night.

The 39-year-old lorry driver, from Bradford, was treated for shock.

Police are appealing for anyone who witnessed the crash to contact them, particularly any other motorcyclist who may have been riding with or near the injured biker before the crash.

- A driver was taken to hospital suffering spinal injuries following a crash near York early today.

The Fiat vehicle the man was driving overturned on Newton Road near Linton-on-Ouse and landed on its roof in a field at about 6am.

Updated: 11:15 Friday, August 17, 2001