DRIVERS were allowed to drive the wrong way down the M62 to escape traffic chaos.

They were among thousands of motorists caught up in the traffic jams when the M62 was shut after a crash.

They were trapped between Ainley Top and Rishworth after police and Highways Agency officers were forced to shut the westbound carriageway for several hours.

But emergency services tried to ease the problem with a “reverse release” – allowing drivers to turn around on the shut carriageway and leave by the closed entry slip roads at Outlane and Ainley Top.

It was a manoeuvre carefully managed by Highways Agency staff in a bid to ease the congestion.

At one point, queues stretched back several miles and drivers faced at least an hour’s delay.

The hold-ups also brought long queues on to feeder roads close to the M62.

The problems began shortly before 3pm when an articulated lorry carrying coiled wire swerved across the westbound carriageway between Scammonden Dam and Stott Hall Farm and hit the central barrier.

The barrier at that point is a steel rope, to prevent snow building up in winter, and it was ripped up by the heavy truck.

The lorry also shed part of its load on to the carriageway before coming to a halt.

The driver was unhurt but police had to close the busy westbound lanes.

A spokesman for the Highways Agency said: “Police and the agency decided to close the westbound carriageway between Junctions 24 at Ainley Top and Junction 22 at Rishworth.

“That meant the entry slip roads at Ainley Top and Outlane were closed and traffic had to be diverted.

“Traffic was being advised to follow the solid circle symbol-led diversion route using the A629 Calderdale Way past Elland and then on the A646, A6033, A58, A664 and A6193 through Hebden Bridge and then Todmorden.

“They were being asked to rejoin the M62 at Junction 21 at Milnrow.

“The vehicles that were stuck on the motorway between Junction 24 and the accident site near Stott Hall Farm obviously faced long delays and we tried to get them off safely by turning them around on the motorway and using the slip roads.

“The barrier at the site of the crash was ripped up and became entangled beneath the lorry and that had to be cleared.

“We then need to get engineers to look at repairs to the barrier before the motorway could be re-opened”.

Police confirmed that no-one was hurt in the crash.

The stretch of motorway was re-opened at 7.30pm after repairs to the barrier were completed.