A 17-YEAR-OLD Wirral student was killed after the motorbike he was riding crashed into a taxi doing a U-turn, an inquest heard yesterday.
Philip Wilson, of Barnard Road, Oxton, died after he crashed on Townfield Lane, Oxton, and went head-first into a lamp-post. He suffered multiple injuries and died at Arrowe Park Hospital four hours later.
His girlfriend, Penny, was three months pregnant when he died. He had wanted to become a mechanic and was studying body repair at Wirral Metropolitan College.
The Crown Prosecution Service has since decided the taxi driver, Andrew Lang, will face charges of driving without due care and attention.
Coroner Christopher Johnson said: “It is incumbent on every driver to make sure a manoeuvre is done in a safe way in a safe manner at a safe time.”
Mr Wilson had owned the bike, a red Honda 125cc, for only two weeks after previously riding scooters.
He had been travelling down Townfield Lane just before 10pm on Friday, May 2, when he tried to avoid the pale green taxi, but crashed into the front of the vehicle.
Crash investigators were unable to tell how fast he was travelling, but judged that, even at speeds of 60mph, he would have been visible from where the taxi was for six seconds.
PC John Salmon, of Merseyside Police Collision Investigation Unit, estimated it would have taken the taxi about two seconds to get to its position in the middle of the road. He said the road was straight for 150m before the scene of crash.
Mr Lang told police in an interview that he was parked before starting his manoeuvre, which he said he did only after he checked his mirrors, looked over his shoulder and indicated.
Oliver Dean, who was sat nearby in his car, estimated Mr Wilson’s speed at 40mph. The speed limit on the road is 30mph and the road was dry and well-lit.
He went over to the scene and told the inquest he heard the taxi driver say “what have you seen?” to one of the people present, and the reply “I’ll tell the police when they get here”.
Mr Johnson recorded a narrative verdict.
alex.turner
