A judge in Ireland has said that a cyclist’s decision to not wear a helmet is “of no relevance” to a collision which left him with a broken leg and saw the taxi driver responsible fined €1,000 for careless driving.

However, in court this week in Dundalk, the judge also concluded that the motorist’s actions were at the “lower end of carelessness”, as his view was “significantly obstructed” approaching the roundabout where he struck the cyclist from behind.

Meanwhile, a police officer who attended the scene reported that the injured rider was not wearing a helmet, was wearing “relatively” dark clothing, using an earphone, and that his front light may not have been working, while also telling the court that the taxi driver’s view may have been blocked by traffic signs.

The collision, which took place at 10.49pm on 18 November 2021 at a roundabout on Inner Relief Road in Dundalk, halfway between Belfast and Dublin, saw taxi driver Bernard Hutchinson hit a cyclist from behind on his way to pick up a fare, the Irish Independent reports.

Roundabout, Inner Relief Road, Dundalk
Roundabout, Inner Relief Road, Dundalk (Image Credit: Google Maps)

The collision buckled the bike’s back wheel and threw the cyclist to the ground, breaking his left leg and thumb. After the crash, the cyclist spent several days in hospital, where his left tibia was nailed together during surgery, and was off work for six months after experiencing difficulty lifting heavy objects.

68-year-old Hutchinson tested negative for alcohol and drugs at the roadside in the immediate aftermath of the collision, with the investigating garda telling the court this week that he was distraught and “extremely cooperative”.

Garda Dave Buckley also testified that, when he arrived at the scene, he saw the injured cyclist and his bike lying on the road several metres in front of Hutchinson’s stationary car.

Buckley told the court that the man, who was in severe pain with cuts on his body, was not wearing a helmet and was dressed in “relatively dark clothing”, with an earphone in one ear. The police officer said he found a rear bike light on the road, while the bike’s front light was not working, though it was impossible to say if it had been working at the time of the crash.

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In a voluntary cautionary statement given after the collision, Hutchinson told police that he saw no lights or reflectors on the bike, and that the cyclist was not wearing hi-vis clothing.

Meanwhile, Buckley added in court that the taxi driver’s view “may have been obstructed by traffic signs”, and that he was an upstanding member of the community who had stopped to aid the stricken cyclist.

Hutchinson had initially denied a charge of careless driving causing serious bodily harm, leading to a trial being arranged, but later pleaded guilty when rearraigned.

The driver’s counsel told the court this week that the fully insured part-time taxi driver has been married for 44 years and driving without incident for 50, including driving two of his three adult sons to international amateur kickboxing and taekwondo events.

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The driver’s defence lawyer also noted that the injured cyclist had been fully compensated and wished the 68-year-old “no ill will”.

Nevertheless, they did admit that a “second glance to the right might have been appropriate”, while saying that the cyclist was “travelling at some reasonable speed, which he was entitled to do”.

After CCTV footage showing two different angles of the crash was played to the court, Hutchinson’s counsel argued that his actions were “very much at the lower level of culpability” and asked the court to “exercise its discretion not to impose a disqualification”.

An engineer’s report for the defence also showed a loss of vision on the approach to the roundabout, which would nevertheless have been mitigated by a second look before driving on.

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Summarising, Judge Dara Hayes agreed that the taxi driver’s view was “significantly obstructed” before approaching the yield line on the roundabout, but that he didn’t make a sufficient final check. Nevertheless, Hayes noted that Hutchinson’s driving prior to the crash was not “hasty” and appeared “relatively conservative”.

The judge also concluded that the fact that the cyclist was not wearing a helmet when he was hit was “of no relevance to the case”.

Arguing that his driving “appeared to fall at the lower end of carelessness” – and noting that his change of plea on the trial date, while not carrying the same weight as an early guilty plea, “was always of value” – the judge fined Hutchinson €1,000, which he must pay within six months.

The 68-year-old was not banned from driving, however, the judge concluding that a “driving disqualification was not required”.