A TAXI crashed on the A64 after it was stolen from York Railway Station.

North Yorkshire Police said the vehicle was stolen from outside the station at just after 3pm.

A spokeswoman said the taxi was driven out of York city centre and collided with another vehicle on the westbound carriageway of the A64 at Bowbridge Farm, after Bilborough Top services.

The spokeswoman could not confirm whether police were in pursuit at the time of the collision, but said officers had been following the vehicle at points after it was stolen.

Vicki Sellars, taxi operator and dispatcher for York Station Taxis, said the driver of the Ford Mondeo saloon was helping a customer load bags into the back of the vehicle when a man jumped into the car.

She said: "We were quite shaken up, we're all shocked. Nothing like this has ever happened before, we didn't expect anything like this.

"I think everyone was shocked. There was a full rank, a lot of customers waiting and not many taxis in at that time."

Nobody was believed to have been injured in the crash, and police did not close the road, but very heavy traffic was reported on the A64 following the collision.

A 31-year-old man has been arrested in connection to the incident.

He was not injured in the crash, but was taken to York by ambulance after complaining he felt unwell, the spokeswoman said.