Lancashire Police have launched an investigation after several drivers were seen driving the wrong way on the M6 on Sunday. The incident happened on the northbound carriageway near junction 34, where drivers turned around and drove back up a slip road to avoid delays following a collision.
Drivers identified
Police said a number of the vehicles involved have been identified and warned that "appropriate action" will be taken against the motorists. Nobody was seriously hurt in the collision or the subsequent wrong-way driving, but officers said the outcome "could have easily been so different."
In a statement, Lancashire Police said: "We need to tell you about something that happened on the motorway this weekend, that is absolutely unacceptable. Shortly before 1:45pm yesterday, we received a report of a collision on the M6 northbound near to junction 34, and as a result, there were people turning around and driving the wrong way back up the slip road to avoid joining the motorway."
Appeal for footage
Officers are now appealing for dashcam or mobile phone footage from anyone who was on the slip road at the time and may have captured other drivers going the wrong way. Police said driving in this manner "can have utterly devastating consequences," referencing two fatal wrong-way crashes near Middlesbrough and in Ireland.
The appeal follows two deadly incidents. In Teesside early on Saturday, two police officers and five others were killed when a Volkswagen Passat, pursued by police, drove the wrong way along a dual carriageway and struck a police marked armed response vehicle. PC Matthew Blades, 37, and PC Tom Clough, 38, lost their lives, along with Cole Robert Worthy, 17, Theo Rae, 17, Makai Saddington, 18, and 23-year-olds Michael Robert Cahill and Jacob Matusiak.
Days earlier, five teenagers died on the M9 in Co Kildare when their BMW crashed while driving the wrong way. Three women and a seven-year-old boy in the other vehicle involved were left badly injured in hospital.
Police warning
Lancashire Police added: "Being stuck in standstill or slow-moving traffic can be frustrating, we get it, but it is never an excuse to put the lives of those around you, and your own life at risk. Nobody got hurt yesterday, but that outcome could have so easily been different."
The force concluded: "We will not tolerate driving that endangers lives. If you have information or footage that can help us, please call 101 quoting log 0689 of 23rd August."
