Tunnel police are trying to trace the owner of a gold wedding ring that turned up in the reject tray of an automatic toll machine.

The ring - inscribed “Until I die” - was found at the toll booths at Merseytravel’s Queensway Tunnel at around 9.30am this morning.

A Merseytravel spokesman said: “The ring may have innocently slipped from the finger of someone paying to travel through the tunnel.

"But a wedding ring is usually worn on the left hand and people use their right hand to put cash into the hopper.”

The ring also has the name of a woman and a date, which is presumed to be the owner’s wife and wedding date.

The spokesman said: “We are appealing for help in tracing this person. "They may be aware that the ring has been lost, but may not know where.

"It would be lovely to reunite the ring with its owner before Christmas.”

The wedding band is being held by tunnel police and anyone who can identify it and confirm the rest of the inscription is asked to contact them on 0151 236 8602, pressing option one for police traffic control.