Wrong-way drivers in M4 chaos

The motorists were driving just a few junctions apart.

Two motorists have driven the wrong way down a busy motorway within an hour of each other.

In the first incident, a man drove more than 10 miles in the wrong direction of the M4, after joining at Junction 14 for Hungerford, Berkshire, on Thursday evening.

He then drove down the eastbound carriageway towards Wiltshire, eventually leaving the motorway at Junction 15 for Swindon.

Just an hour later, several motorists reported seeing a red Renault Clio going in the wrong direction at Junction 11.

'Real coincidence'

This time the driver was heading eastbound on the westbound carriageway.

Despite a sweep by Thames Valley Police over several miles, involving a helicopter and patrol cars, officers did not find the driver.

In the first incident, police caught up with the man near the A420 junction, where he was arrested.

A spokeswoman for the force said: "The two incidents are a real coincidence.

"Wiltshire Police arrested the first driver.

"We couldn't find the second - maybe they left the motorway at the next junction after realising their mistake."

In March 2002, two people died when a man crashed head-on into another driver, when he was travelling at 75 mph on the wrong carriageway between Swindon and Hungerford.

Six vehicles, including a lorry, were involved in the pile-up.