An inquest into the death of a Shildon man has recorded a verdict of accidental death.
Stephen Thomas Little, 34, died in the early hours of 6th April this year after being hit by a car whilst cycling on the Shildon to Bishop Auckland bypass.
The inquest heard how the driver of the Skoda Octavia, Harry Duffin, would have had no time to react, as Little, who had decided to visit his brother on the morning of the accident, was riding a bike with no reflectors on a road with no streetlights.
A post-mortem examination also found that Mr Little, from Kilburn Street, had a blood alcohol reading of more than twice the legal driving limit.
Mr Duffin, who was on his way to work at the time of the incident, said, “I came off the roundabout at the top of the hill and dipped my headlights because there was cars coming in the opposite direction.
“I started to accelerate down the hill and there was suddenly a cyclist in my field of vision. I swerved to the right, but hit him. I had no more than a second or two between seeing him and the collision.”
Recording a verdict of accidental death, Coroner Andrew Tweddle said, “Mr Duffin was travelling downhill on a dark road, with headlights from cars coming in the opposite direction.
“We can presume that a driver would not expect to see an unlit pedal cycle at 5am. All these factors converge together to make it very difficult for a driver to see an unlit pedal cyclist at that time and place.”
Shildon & District's local community newspaper.
