A phantom 'road ghost' is reportedly haunting a quiet stretch of road in north-west England.
The ghostly hitchhiker was claimed to be in his mid-30s with slight facial hair and dark eyes, according to paranormal expert and Liverpool John Moores University's visiting professor Dr Rob Gandy.
Meeting these types of haunting figures are one of the most terrifying experiences for witnesses, as they tend to be overwhelming real, he said.
Dr Gandy was documenting unexplained encounters on UK roads, and cited a particularly harrowing tale from 1983.
At the time, a driver - known only as Mr M - was heading along a coastal road between Ainsdale and Southport in Merseyside.
It's an open stretch of road that's almost entirely straight for 2.6 miles, with high hills on either side.
Mr M spotted a lone man walking by himself along the coastal road during the dark and stormy night.
He pulled over, and offered the man a lift to get him out of the heavy rain - an offer that was accepted.
Dr Gandy told the LiverpoolEcho : "Although his behaviour was normal and calm, he had a troubled expression which Mr M put down to him being out in such bad weather."
The hitchhiker had a "local Southport accent" and took a seat next to Mr M in the car.
The man suddenly asked if his girlfriend could join him - despite nobody else seemingly around.
Mr M agreed, and the hitchhiker hopped out of the car and walked around toward the boot... where he mysteriously disappeared.
Dr Gandy said: "It took about 20 seconds for Mr M to realise that the man had completely disappeared and that there was no sign of any girlfriend.
"The road at that point was edged with high sandhills and there was quite simply nowhere the man could have gone."
There have been a number of similar reports across the country, added the paranormal expert.
But, this case made it straight into his top six scariest road ghost encounters he's ever come across.
