Man, 59, left with 'life-changing' injuries after motorbike smash on motorway

A man has been left with 'life-changing' injuries after a motorbike crash on the M65 motorway.

The smash happened on the eastbound side of the motorway, between junctions four and five near Blackburn, at around 3.25pm yesterday afternoon (Sunday). Lancashire Police said a Triumph Tiger 1050 bike hit the central reservation.

The rider - a 59-year-old man - was rushed to hospital from the scene. He remains there with life-changing injuries.

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A stretch of the motorway was closed for several hours yesterday afternoon as emergency crews responded. Officers now want to speak to any witnesses or anyone who has dash cam footage of the crash.

They also urged people not to speculate on social media about the crash. In a statement issued this morning, Lancashire Police added: "First and foremost, our thoughts are with the injured man, and his loved ones at this challenging time.

"We’re now appealing to you, the public, to ask that if you have any dashcam footage from the M65, between junctions 1 and 5, between 3:15 and 3:25 pm, to please get in touch. We are also keen to speak with any other drivers, particularly any other motorcyclists, who were travelling Eastbound around this time, and may have witnessed the collision or stopped at the scene.

"If this is you, or you know someone who was travelling along this section of the M65 around the time of the collision, please get in touch. Thank you for your patience whilst the motorway was closed for a few hours yesterday, as the man was taken to hospital, and we carried out our enquiries.

"We know that this will have caused concern for some of you, and that there has been some speculation