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Arrest after woman killed in Christmas Day crash

Google Maps A street image of the northbound and southbound carriageways. Two blue sign tower over the northbound carriageway which read "A66 (M) Darlington and Teesside" and "A1(M) Durham and Newcastle".Google Maps
The collision happened on the A1(M) near Darlington

A man has been arrested after a woman was killed in a two-vehicle Christmas Day collision which shut a major motorway for 12 hours.

Emergency services in North Yorkshire were called to the A1(M) northbound shortly after 20:30 GMT on Wednesday following the crash between a white Ford Fiesta and a black Volkswagen Tiguan near Stapleton.

The Fiesta driver, a man in his 80s from Bishop Auckland, suffered serious injuries, while the passenger, a woman in her 80s, also from Bishop Auckland, died at the scene.

Police said the Volkswagen driver, a man in his 20s from Bishop Auckland, had been arrested on suspicion of causing death by dangerous driving and later released under investigation.

The force said the road was closed after the incident and did not reopen until about 08:00 GMT on Thursday.

A North Yorkshire Police spokesperson asked anyone who witnessed the collision, which happened between J57 and J58, to come forward.

A lane closure was still in place on the northbound carriageway on Thursday morning, the spokesperson added.

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