Just a few years after the first stretch of the M1 motorway opened in the early 1960s, stories began to circulate about a mysterious hitchhiker seen along the route. One of the earliest accounts was even filmed for Ulster Television: a motorist named William Nesbitt spoke on camera about encountering a ghostly figure by the roadside who vanished without explanation.

The legend usually describes a lone traveller appearing suddenly near the flyover, sometimes stepping towards oncoming cars, sometimes signalling for a lift, and disappearing the moment anyone slows down. In later versions, the figure is said to be a woman who died on the road, though no confirmed record has ever tied the story to a real tragedy.

This encounter took place somewhere on the western M1 near Belfast—early accounts mention a “motorway flyover” and stretches between Broadway and the suburbs. However, no firm junction or precise location has ever been verified.