The Civil Guard is investigating a 76-year-old British man who drove 17 kilometres in the wrong direction along the AP-7 motorway in Alicante province, seriously endangering other road users. The incident, which occurred late on October 18, prompted numerous emergency calls from motorists and was detected by the motorway’s surveillance cameras.
At around 10:45 p.m., the Operations Centre of the Alicante Traffic Subsector (COTA) received a report from the AP-7’s concession company that a white car was travelling the wrong way in the Cartagena-bound lanes near kilometre marker 754, Quesada.
Simultaneously, the 112 emergency line was flooded with calls from drivers alarmed by the oncoming vehicle.
Traffic patrols from the Torrevieja and Orihuela units were immediately deployed to intercept the car. Despite repeated warnings from officers using flashing lights, sirens and loudspeaker messages, the driver continued heading against the flow of traffic in the left lane, forcing several motorists to take evasive action to avoid head-on collisions.
The vehicle eventually exited the motorway at junction 737, Almoradi, where officers managed to stop it on the CV-912 road after it had travelled a total of 17 kilometres in the wrong direction.
The driver, a 76-year-old British national, has been formally placed under investigation for a road safety offence — reckless driving that posed a serious risk to life and public safety — as defined under Article 380 of the Spanish Penal Code.
The Civil Guard has reminded motorists to pay close attention to road signage, especially when entering or exiting motorways, to prevent incidents of this nature, which can have potentially fatal consequences.
