Bus driver denies causing death of cyclist on A9

Driver told police he ‘did not see him’

A coach driver accused of knocking down and killing a cyclist said the first thing he knew about the incident was when he heard “a bang”.

Andrew Blyth told police he had not seen a cyclist on the A9 and only realised something had happened when he heard a noise and then stopped the coach to investigate.

The jury at Perth Sheriff Court was told yesterday that Robert Don was found to have sustained a head injury and died in hospital more than a week later.

During his police interview, Blyth, 53, said: “I stopped just because of the bang. I did not see him whatsoever.”

The jury was told in an agreed statement that Mr Don had not been wearing a helmet and was not wearing any high-visibility clothing. He was wearing a black jacket and blue jeans.

The jury also heard that he had been visiting his sister in Luncarty and was cycling home to Amulree Court in Perth when he was injured on December 30 2013.

They heard that the cycle path which runs alongside the A9 Inverness to Perth road was flooded and impassable at the time of the incident.

The trial was told the bike – which did not appear to be damaged – was found on the pavement along with blood.

Paramedic Jane Sweeney said she was called to the scene and found Mr Don conscious and being treated in the back of another ambulance.

She said: “He was conscious, combative and unmanageable. I found there was an injury to his head.

“I noted what I thought to be a significant head injury that required further skills to my own.”

Mrs Sweeney, 46, told the jury that the un-cooperative way Mr Don was behaving could be consistent with someone who had suffered a head injury.

He was transferred to a specialist trauma team and taken to Ninewells Hospital in Dundee where he died from his injuries on January 8 2014.

Blyth, is accused of causing the death of 53-year-old cyclist Robert Don by knocking him down because he failed to keep a proper lookout on the road.

Blyth, 52, Abbotsford Road, Hamilton, denies causing Mr Don’s death by driving his coach carelessly on the A9 near Inveralmond roundabout.

The trial, before a jury and Sheriff William Wood, continues.