A FOUR-CAR smash on one of York's busiest main roads caused "total mayhem" for rush-hour motorists yesterday.

People travelling home after work faced extensive delays as emergency services blocked Wigginton Road for several hours to attend to the crash scene between the Bumper Castle pub and Crichton Avenue.

Police, firefighters, four ambulances and a consultant from York District Hospital were all called to the scene of the accident involving four vehicles and a pedal cyclist, at about 5.40pm.

Firefighters used two sets of hydraulic cutting gear to free a seriously-injured male driver from the wreckage of a Renault Clio. The 21-year-old was taken to York District Hospital to receive treatment for two broken legs, head injuries and a suspected broken arm.

He went into theatre overnight and was later transferred to the hospital's High Dependency Unit, where his condition was this morning described by police as "stable, but very poorly".

Paramedics took four other people to hospital, including a mother in her twenties with a young baby. The young woman had chest and whiplash injuries; an ambulance service spokeswoman said the baby's injuries were not believed to be serious.

She said the other two patients, both male, one aged about 25, the other about 33, had minor injuries.

Traffic constable Chris Redin described the effects of the crash as "total mayhem".

He said the accident involved a blue Subaru Impreza travelling out of the city towards the bypass, with a line of cars going in the opposite direction.

"It's too early to say what happened exactly, but at some point the Subaru was in a collision with one of the oncoming vehicles. The Subaru then seems to have spun out of control and struck two other oncoming vehicles - a Renault Clio and a Toyota Corolla."

Nestl worker David Corner, 49, from Wigginton, was caught up in the accident.

His Skoda Fabia ended up in a ditch on the opposite side of the road.

He said: "I'm really quite shaken up about what happened, it was all so sudden.

"I was just on my way to work when suddenly my car's nose down in a ditch.

"It just makes you realise how lucky you are. I dread to think what would have happened if I'd been going any faster," he said.

Police are appealing for witnesses who may have seen the collision, or the manner in which the vehicles were being driven, to phone them on 0845 606 0247.

Updated: 09:59 Friday, December 17, 2004