TRIBUTES have poured in for a 20-year-old motorycyclist who died after his bike collided with a van.

Student Joe Chart died on Monday afternoon after colliding with the van on Altcar Road in Formby.

Paramedics fought in vain for nearly half an hour to save his life following the accident at the junction of Altcar Road and Stephenson Way.

It is believed that Joe, a former pupil at Formby High school, had been travelling with a group of three fellow motorcyclists towards Altcar when his Aprilla bike was in collision with the side of a Renault van.

Staff from nearby Formby Cycles raced out to the scene and one employee cut Joes motorcycle helmet free with a pair of scissors.

A woman with medical training who works part-time in a neighbouring cafe on Altcar Road also arrived on the scene and tried to resuscitate him.

Joe was a former pupil of Woodlands Primary School and Formby High School where he had studied in the sixth form.

Brian Rourke, head teacher at Formby High, said: Joe was a pleasant, cheerful, well-mannered young man who was very popular with staff and his fellow students.