Bus driver killed elderly couple after smashing into their car head-on
BY DAVE FINLAY reporters@dailyrecord.co.uk
A BUS driver who killed a couple in a crash after they took their new car out for a drive was facing jail yesterday.
Stephen Jones repeatedly drove a service bus on to the opposing carriageway before smashing into an oncoming Vauxhall Corsa, resulting in the deaths of Ian and Helen McKay.
Ian, 78, and Helen, 79, from Bathgate, West Lothian, suffered multiple injuries in the collision and were pronounced dead at the scene.
The four passengers on the bus Jones was driving from Linlithgow to Livingston were also injured. Footage from the EM Horsburgh bus was shown to a judge at the High Court in Edinburgh.
Jones, 57, of Glenmore, Whitburn, West Lothian, admitted causing the deaths of Ian and Helen and injury to passengers on January 8 last year by driving dangerously on the B792 Torphichen to West Calder road.
He repeatedly drove onto the wrong side of the road, drove at a speed that was excessive for the layout of the road, failed to negotiate a left-hand bend and drove into the path of Ian and Helen’s car.
Advocate depute Steven
Borthwick said: “Mr and Mrs McKay had bought a new car the day before the collision.”
Mr Borthwick said one of the passengers, Greg Moodie, 56, said that as the bus pulled away from temporary traffic lights it was “going way too fast”.
Mr Borthwick added: “Mr Moodie saw the car being driven by the now deceased Ian McKay and noted that the bus was travelling towards it head-on.
“He states that the bus driver made no attempts to brake and indeed appeared to accelerate before the bus collided with the deceased’s car.”
Solicitor advocate Ewen Roy said custody was “inevitable” for Jones, who has previous convictions, including for speeding and careless driving.
The judge, Lord Doherty, deferred sentence on Jones until next month and remanded him in custody.