Traffic halted and motorway blocked after stray dog spotted on carriageway

Officers halted all traffic on the M6 this morning after a stray dog was spotted on the carriageway.

The dog was spotted between junction 17 for Congleton and junction 18 for Holmes Chapel at around 7.45am this morning (Sunday).

Traffic was temporarily stopped on both sides of the carriageway.

Traffic officers managed to safely take the dog from the road and get it into a secured vehicle.

The dog was spotted on the carriageway (Highways England)

All lanes are now back open.

Pictures from the motorway cameras at the scene show the dog running loose on the inside lane of the motorway.

Traffic can be seen backed up on the road after it had been stopped.

All traffic was halted at the scene (Highways England)

Another camera image shows the dog being taken to safety by a traffic officer.

In a tweet, Highways England North West said: "The #M6 in BOTH directions #J17 (#Congleton #Sandbach #A534) to #J18 (#HolmesChapel #Chester #Northwich #Middlewich) traffic has been temporarily STOPPED due to a stray dog that had made it onto the road."

The dog was taken to safety (Highways England)

A further tweet said: "The #M6 in BOTH directions #J17 to #J18. With the assistance of Traffic Officers, we've managed to safely contain the dog and get it secured into a vehicle.

"Traffic has been released and all lanes are back open."