A dangerous driver with a ‘bruised ego’ caused a ‘terrifying’ crash in Swindon.
As 19-year-old Toby Welsh was driving along Purton Road, near Mustang Way, he attempted to merge from two lanes into a single lane – but the motorist alongside him did not allow him in.
The defendant – in an “egotistical” move – drove on the wrong side of the road and the wrong side of a pedestrian refuge island to overtake the offending motorist, Swindon Magistrates’ Court heard.
Pauline Lambert, prosecuting, said that the manoeuvre caused an oncoming driver to slam on their brakes to avoid hitting Welsh’s blue Honda Civic. In doing so, another car ploughed into the back of them.
The occupants of the first car – a grey SEAT – were a woman and her 11-year-old son. The second car – a silver SEAT – contained a man, a woman and two children aged two and five.
Both cars were written off but nobody suffered any significant injuries in the incident on 28 April. However, the three adult victims were left with ongoing pain as a result of the impact. The five-year-old boy now says “we crashed here, that blue car was naughty” when he is driven past the crash scene.
Welsh left the scene and was later traced by police. In an interview, he said he was unaware of the collision or any vehicles on the other side of the road when he carried out the manoeuvre.
He made full admissions, telling officers that “it was an egotistic thing” – he “wanted to prove a point” by getting in front of the vehicle that wouldn’t let him overtake in the merge lane.
Claire Gooding, defending, said her client was with his girlfriend and her mother in the car and he was taking them to a venue in Swindon from his home in New Brookend in Berkeley, Gloucestershire.
She said that Welsh has held a driving licence since just after his 17th birthday and worked as a delivery driver for a significant period of time, adding that he is now a Cardiff University.
Ms Gooding said he “was not feeling great… he was worried about going away to university”. She told the court that the driver “did not let him filter across” and as a result this “caused him to become angry and he decided to go around the car”.
“Unfortunately his emotions got the better of him… he did not have control of his temper at the time”. Ms Gooding said he is “very sorry” for what happened and is “ashamed”.
Sarah Neish, the chair of the bench, described the crash as “terrifying” for those involved and said that it was “quite hard” to keep Welsh out of prison. She said the incident had a “huge impact” on two families, including “huge financial loss”.
“It was very immature poor decision making… those victims in this case will be very interested to know what happens to you today and how you will be punished for your actions”, Ms Neish added:
Taking into account his previous good character and remorse, the magistrates imposed a 12-month community order with a single requirement to complete 200 hours of unpaid work.
He was banned from driving for 12 months and is required to take an extended re-test to get his licence back. Welsh must also pay prosecution costs and a surcharge.
