Tributes paid to 'lovely' man who died following collision on M1 near Hemel Hempstead

Tribute has been paid to 'lovely' man who died following a road traffic collision on the M1 near Hemel Hempstead last weekend.

The incident occurred on the northbound carriageway, between junction 8 for Hemel Hempstead and junction 9 for Redbourn, at just before 5.25am on Sunday, January 30.

A lorry and a coach were involved.

The driver of the coach, 57-year-old Stephen Kitching, from Kendal in Cumbria, died at the scene.

A 29-year-old woman, who was driving a car, was arrested at the scene on suspicion of causing death by dangerous driving and driving above the alcohol limit.

Following further enquiries, the woman is no longer under investigation for causing the collision; however, she remains under investigation for driving above the alcohol limit.

Paying tribute to Stephen, his sister Dawn Dixon said: “Stephen was a lovely gentleman. Anyone who met him would leave with a smile and a sore stomach from laughing.

“He leaves behind sisters, nephews, nieces and great nieces and he will be sadly missed.”

Sergeant Simon Cooper, from the Bedfordshire, Cambridgeshire and Hertfordshire Road Policing Unit said: “Our thoughts remain with Stephen’s family and friends at this very difficult time.

“Our enquiries are continuing in order to establish the circumstances around what happened and we are still appealing for any witnesses who haven’t yet spoken to police to please come forward.

"We’re particularly keen to hear from anyone who may have captured dash cam footage of the incident, or of the vehicles travelling in the area prior to it.”

You can report information online, or by calling 101, quoting ISR 124 of 30 January, 2022.