A teenager was arrested yesterday on suspicion of dangerous driving after a crash involving a van and a crane on the A47.Two men were taken to the Norfolk and Norwich University Hospital after the 7am accident which caused rush hour chaos for motorists heading to Norwich and Yarmouth with tailbacks stretching to the Thickthorn roundabout and to the Postwick junction.

A teenager was arrested yesterday on suspicion of dangerous driving after a crash involving a van and a crane on the A47 near Norwich.

Two men were taken to the Norfolk and Norwich University Hospital after the 7am accident which caused rush-hour chaos for motorists heading to Norwich and Yarmouth with tailbacks stretching to the Thickthorn roundabout and to the Postwick junction.

One of the men suffered a chest injury, but was later discharged, while the second remained in hospital with a head and back injury following the crash at the top of the A146 slip road at Trowse, near Norwich.

The man kept in hospital was said to be in a serious but stable condition.

An 18-year-old man from the Cambridge area was arrested on suspicion of dangerous driving and released on police bail.

Police closed the eastbound stretch of the road and the A146 slip road, while the outer westbound lane was also closed for a time after the van went into the central reservation.

Motorists faced lengthy delays after diversions were put in place with traffic also forced to go through the city to get to the old Yarmouth Road.

Ambulance and fire crews were all on scene to help free the injured, and the road was reopened at 10.30am.

Accident investigators are probing the cause of the crash and officers are keen to speak to anyone who saw what happened or witnessed the driving of either vehicle.

One 36-year-old motorist heading into work said the situation was chaotic as cars were diverted through Thorpe St Andrew on the Yarmouth Road.

"It took me about 45 minutes to do a four-mile journey, which normally takes half that," he said.

"Cars were bumper to bumper; it was chaos."

The accident comes days after the death of a 43-year-old motorcyclist after a collision with Mercedes on the A146 at Bixley, near Norwich on Sunday.

Anyone with information should contact PC Chris Tremlin on 0845 456 4567.