Motorist drives the wrong way along the hard shoulder – with a woman running after the car – after crash causes four-hour tailbacks on the M1
- A blue Mercedes drives along the hard shoulder in Barnsley, South Yorkshire
- Woman runs after vehicle as it heads towards the exit near junction 37 of the M1
- The car continues along hard shoulder after a crash on the motorway leaves two men left with serious injuries
This is the shocking moment a motorist is captured driving in the wrong direction along the hard shoulder of a motorway while trying to avoid a four-hour traffic jam.
The footage, captured by John Armitage, 58, a businessman from Durham, shows the blue Mercedes drive towards the exit with a woman chasing after it after all lanes had been closed near Junction 37 of the southbound M1 in Barnsley, South Yorkshire.
Mr Armitage, who also sent his footage to the police, said the road had been closed after a crash at around 5.25pm saw two men with serious injuries taken to hospital and drivers stuck in four-hour tailbacks on March 30.
A motorist drives in the wrong direction down the hard shoulder of a motorway in Barnsley, South Yorkshire, with a woman chasing after it
The blue Mercedes drives towards the exit after all lanes are left closed near Junction 37 of the southbound M1
Following the serious crash it was reported that a black Mercedes CLS250, travelling southbound along the M1 between junction 37-36, was in collision with a grey Mercedes CLA220, travelling in the same direction.
Police confirmed that a 54-year-old man and a 41-year-old man had been taken to hospital with serious injuries.
During the footage, the blue Mercedes drives towards the exit of the motorway after all lanes are left closed following the serious crash.
A woman, who according to Mr Armitage got out of the same car, chases the vehicle as it continues along the hard shoulder and leaves motorists startled.
Mr Armitage said: ‘The road was closed following an incident.
‘The passenger had exited the car and was walking along the hard shoulder too.’
He said that ‘morons’ like the driver in the video cause the worst accidents.
He added: ‘The video has been submitted to South Yorkshire police for them to investigate the incident and hopefully explain to the driver the dangers of driving the wrong way along a motorway hard shoulder.’
Following a serious crash, the blue Mercedes tries to find a route out of the four-hour queue on the motorway
South Yorkshire Police have released an appeal in regards to the crash, which involved two other Mercedes cars, but have not yet commented specifically on Mr Armitage’s dashcam footage.
A South Yorkshire Police spokesman added: ‘Officers are appealing for witnesses following a two car collision on the M1 over the weekend.’
There have been no arrests so far.