Yousuf Bhailok in M6 Jaguar crash which saw Preston gridlocked

Preston’s gridlock which saw the entire city’s road network grind to a halt stemmed back to a crash involving one of the city’s richest people.

Multi-millionaire Yousuf Bhailok was not hurt when the red Jaguar he was driving crashed on the M6 northbound near Junction 31.

Pictures and video sent to Blog Preston and shared in a Preston community group on WhatsApp show Mr Bhailok, who lives in Haighton, at the side of the motorway.

Read more: Motorists braced for five months of delays as Bluebell Way and Roman Way roadworks loom

There was extensive damage to the front and rear of his vehicle and the airbags can be seen as having been activated.

A lane was closed on both directions of the motorway following the crash at 12.29pm on Tuesday (29 October) lunchtime.

Speaking in a video at the scene Mr Bhailok said: “The tyre flew off and the car went into the barrier.

“And I am perfectly well. I am outside the car.”

Mr Bhailok, who unsuccessfully stood to be an independent MP for the city in July’s general election, is known as an avid collector and repairer of vintage and classic cars.

Preston Police confirmed during Tuesday no one had been injured in the crash. No arrests were made and there is no further investigation into the crash.

A spokesperson for National Highways North West told Blog Preston: “Following a collision between a car and the central reservation on the M6 between Junction 31 (Salmesbury) and 31a (Haighton), a rolling roadblock was set up to hold traffic to safely recover the vehicle.

“Single lane closures were put in place in both directions due to the damage caused to the barrier in the collision.

“Specialist equipment was required for the repairs which were carried out from around 4pm onwards and completed overnight. The collision and repair works impacted rush hour traffic.”

The lane closures for barrier repairs led to delays building throughout Tuesday afternoon which then spread onto the surrounding road network and led to drivers reporting journeys of a mile taking an hour to complete across various parts of the city.

Blog Preston has approached a representative of Mr Bhailok for further comment.

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