THREE people have been seriously injured following a serious two-vehicle collision on the M6 Motorway in Cheshire.

All three emergency services attended the incident a couple of miles from Junction 17 near Sandbach just before 10pm on Friday 10 March where a white van and dark coloured Range Rover collided.

Police initially blocked 2 of the 3 lane northbound carriageway before completely closing the North West road as firefighters and paramedics worked to free those trapped.

Traffic reportedly snaked back over 5 miles with motorists stuck in the gridlocked traffic for almost three hours.

Many travellers drove the wrong way down an ‘on ramp’ at Junction 16 in an attempt to avoid the tailbacks, risking points and a fine.

Dashcam footage shows emergency services clearing the outer lanes with brooms whilst specialist motorway officers investigated the vehicles wreckage.

Cheshire Fire and Rescue Service sent 4 crews and helped to cut trapped occupants out of their vehicles.

They said on their website: “Firefighters are in attendance at a road traffic collision on the M6 Northbound between Junction 16 and 17.

“Lanes one and two are currently closed. Further information will be provided when available.

“UPDATE AT 23:00 |  A full closure of the Northbound carriageway is in place while the incident is being dealt with. Please find an alternative route if travelling in the area.

“UPDATE AT 23:45  |  Firefighters are now beginning to come away from the collision, which involved a van and a Range Rover. Crews released three casualties from vehicles and handed them into the care of paramedics.”

Several ambulances were seen leaving the scene on blue lights and sirens as the rescue efforts continued.