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Haunted Roads

One minute, you're driving down a dark, twisty country lane. Out in the middle of nowhere, there's no lights, no cars, no nothing. The next minute, a dark, thick mist descends over the roads and suddenly the moon plays tricks with your mind. Shadows are cast amongst the trees, eyes peer out of hedgerows, someone crosses the road up ahead. Or do they?

The creepy feeling makes you shiver with fright and the hairs on your next shoot up to look like needles on a cactus. You wish you weren't alone, you start to believe the motorway would be better option. But is it?

For Halloween 2006, a survey was carried was carried out to identify the UK's most haunted roads. A wide range of roads appeared in the list, which was carried out on behalf of maintenance company Tarmac, which drew up some surprising results.

Tony Simmons, sightings co-ordinator for Tarmac says, "we compiled the top ten on the basis of the clarity of sightings rather than just the number of spooky experiences. At this time of year [Halloween, that is] it's easy to mistake swirling mist for something more sinister and we wanted to make sure we were listing truly spooky sightings."

Here are the 10 spookiest roads, according to the survey:

1.     The M6
Rather surprisingly, it is a motorway that comes top of the list. Or perhaps it isn't so shocking after all, given this is the UK's longest motorway.

A number of different sightings have been seen along the length of the road, which include a ghostly woman attempting to hitchhike and a phantom lorry driving along the motorway on the wrong carriageway. Even the M6 Toll section has seen ghostly sightings, in the form of Roman troops marching on the carriageway. Sue Cowley, from Coleshill, Warwickshire, told the survey of seeing about 20 soldiers "more like upright shadows than men walking through the tarmac as you would through water."

 "We've had more sightings of clarity reported from the M6 than any other road in Britain. We originally assumed Britain's spookiest road would turn out to be a dark lane near an ancient battlefield. But, when you think about it, it makes sense. The M6 is one of Britain's longest roads and it travels through many counties - and therefore an immense amount of history.

2.     The A9, Highlands
A more likely entry, the A9 has seen the same thing observed by drivers on many occasions. Up near Loch Bhuie, a glittering ornate Victorian coach has been spotted being drawn by white horses, being accompanies by bewigged footmen in full period attire.

3.     Platt Lane, Westhoughton
A road with a disastrous history, to the ordinary daytime motorist its secrets seem unlikely, but at night the spirits come out to play. This small country lane, between Atherton and Westhoughton in Greater Manchester, passes close to the site of the 1910 Pretoria Pit disaster where 344 miners died. Often seen are eyes peering out of the hedges, miners walking along the road (sometimes with coal wagons) and a very eerie mist that falls on the road, even during clear sunny conditions. And I've seen things down there!

However, this road has apparently long been haunted - even prior to the disaster, miners would report seeing or hearing the sound of running horses passing alongside them.

4.     High Street & Suffield Road, Great Yarmouth
On both roads, a phantom dog-like creature with "longer legs" has been seen running at speed along these roads for a short period before suddenly disappearing into thin air. One woman has reported seeing the creature on more than one occasion.

5.     Gloucester Road, Finsbury Park
A well known local phenomenon, residents have reported the sound of children running and laughing, albeit late into the night. There have also been occasions of doors being knocked upon, yet when they have been opened there has been no-one there.

6.     B4293, Devauden
This wooded, twisty road in Wales appears to have its own guardian angel. A lady was driving home late one night when she heard a soft voice advising her to stop. Shocked by this, she pulled over onto the grass verge. Practically immediately, a speeding car came towards her on the wrong side of the road, and devoid of headlights. Had she not stopped, she would have been involved in a serious accident. A search of the area came up with no sign of her "guardian angel."

7.     B3314, Cornwall
A Victorian-looking lady has been seen to walk into the middle of the road, then suddenly stop. When drivers have pulled over to take a look, thinking they have knocked something over, they have seen this lady simply stare at them, then suddenly dissappear.

8.     The A9, Highlands
The only road to appear twice in the top ten, this time at Dornoch. A Victorian man has been sighted riding a white horse along the road, suddenly appearing further down the road very quickly.

9.     B1403, Doncaster
A soldier has been seen marching along this road, in full military uniform and helmet.

10.   Drews Lane, Birmingham
Cars have been heard along this road in the Ward End area of Birmingham, which have apparently screeched along at speed then toppled over.

According to the research undertaken by Tarmac, 45% of drivers surveyed believe they have seen something deemed as unidentifiable while at the wheel, however sightings did vary from the vague to the very detailed. As there are some 41.8 million drivers in the UK, this means that nearly as many as 20 million of us may have seen a ghost or other spooky sighting on Britain's roads.

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