A motorist has been jailed after causing a collision in Harpenden which resulted in a bus driver losing his leg. 

Nathaniel Ferdinand, aged 28, was sentenced to two years and eight months behind bars at St Albans Crown Court on Friday, November 25. 

This comes after he pleaded guilty to causing serious injury by dangerous driving at an earlier hearing.

The collision occurred on the A1081 Luton Road at around 4pm on Saturday, April 9 this year.

Ferdinand, from Henderson Close in St Albans, was driving his BMW along the road when he veered into the opposite carriageway and collided head on with a bus.

The driver of the bus, a man aged in his 60s, was seriously injured, sustaining several fractures which resulted in his leg being amputated.

Ten passengers were also injured in the collision.

Officers attended and Ferdinand, who had sustained slight injuries, failed a drugs wipe at the roadside, testing positive for having cannabis in his system.

He was arrested and subsequently charged.

As well as the custodial sentence, Ferdinand was also banned from driving for 40 months and must take an extended re-test.

Detective Constable David Burstow, from the Bedfordshire, Cambridgeshire and Hertfordshire Serious Collision Investigation Unit, led the case. He said: “This case highlights the traumatic, life-changing effects that driving under the influence of drugs can have.

“Ferdinand, who initially tried to blame the bus driver for the collision, had smoked cannabis until 3am on the day of the incident and caused this horrific crash several hours later. The law is clear, do not take drugs and drive.”