Driver of crashed Freightroute truck that blocked A1 was four times over limit

A Freightroute truck was crashed by a drunken lorry driver who was four times over the limit, according to Durham Police.

The crash took place on Saturday (14 August) at junction 59 of the A1 near Darlington, blocking the A1 for several hours.

Durham Constabulary tweeted a photo of the crashed truck and said: “This driver of this HGV was four times over the drink-drive limit when officers from @DurhamRPU stopped him in the early hours of Saturday morning.

“The driver also blocked junction 59 for several hours while we awaited recovery of the vehicle – let this be a lesson.”

It is unclear if the driver was directly employed by Freightroute or an agency driver.

Durham Police told motortransport.co.uk: “Police were called to reports of a one vehicle collision on the slip road at junction 59 of the A1(M) shortly after 3am on Saturday morning (August 14).

"It involved a large artic truck which collided with the barrier. The slip road was closed for around four hours while recovery of the vehicle took place.

"A 60-year-old man was arrested on suspicion of drink driving and has since been charged. He is due to appear at Newton Aycliffe Magistrates court on September 6.”

Freightroute, which is based in Irthlingborough in Northamptonshire, operates over 180 trucks from 10 depots. It holds a bronze FORS and is a member of Palletforce and Hazchem.

The company has yet to respond to a request for comment.