Watch: Shocking moment lorry driver ploughed into traffic after falling asleep at the wheel

This is the terrifying moment a lorry driver veered onto the wrong side of the road and ploughed into traffic after he fell asleep at the wheel.

Dashcam footage from inside the lorry shows Michael Hughes going across two lanes on the M62 before crashing into the barrier on the central reservation.

The 63-year-old was battling to stay awake as he travelled to Seaforth docks in Liverpool at around 3.15pm on 7 September 2016.

However, Hughes ignored the chance to stop for a break at Burtonwood Services and his eyes dropped.

Drivers on the motorway desperately swerved out of the way to avoid being crushed by the lorry as it continued for nearly a mile in the wrong direction at speeds approaching 50mph.

Aden Stocks smashed into the rear end of another car as he tried to avoid the lorry and was left with lasting injuries to his back and neck.

Hughes, of Dunster Road in Longton, Stoke-On-Trent, has now confessed to falling asleep and pleaded guilty to dangerous driving at Liverpool Crown Court.

Jonathan Rogers, prosecuting, told the court Hughes had been feeling sleepy before the incident.

He said: ‘Significantly, he passes Burtonwood Services at which he could have stopped to take a break.

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‘After this he approaches junction seven to St Helens, where he appears to fall asleep.’

But Hughes, who told police he ‘panicked’ and felt ‘disorientated,’ continued along the wrong side of the motorway at speeds approaching 50mph.

Hughes was eventually stopped by police after multiple calls about the incident.

Nicholas Walker, defending, told the court his client has since been diagnosed with sleep apnoea, a sleeping disorder which can cause people to feel tired during the day.

Mr Walker said: “He will never get back behind the wheel of a HGV and at the age of 63 it has brought his career to an end and his working life to an end.”

Mr Walker said his client, who once served in the army, was ‘deeply sorry’ for the injuries suffered by Mr Stocks, who had been forced to change careers due to neck and back pain.

Dentencing Hughes to nine months in jail, Judge Robert Trevor-Jones said: “It’s an absolute miracle… that something catastrophic didn’t happen.”