Police set up a road block and rammed an 80-year-old pensioner’s car after spotting him driving “eratically and dangerously” the wrong way down the M42 and M5 motorways through the Midlands.

Eagle-eyed officers monitoring cameras covering the motorway network came across the car travelling  into oncoming traffic on the M42 at 1.20am yesterday.

The grey Mitsubishi Colt was seen driving towards the M5 on the M42, going the wrong way along the northbound carriageway.

Officers  set up the rolling road block to stop the  man, who by that time had driven several miles the wrong way down the M5. The pensioner’s car was eventually brought to a halt at junction 5 near Droitwich, where he hit a policeman.

Chief Inspector Carl Flynn, said: “Despite the road block the car was still driven erratically and dangerously in the wrong direction into stationary traffic.

“Our officers bravely intercepted the vehicle and spun the car so that it was then facing in the right direction. Unfortunately the vehicle then collided with a police officer, who was taken to hospital with minor injuries.”

The pensioner, from South Staffordshire was  taken to hospital where he was kept in for observation.