A taxi driver tried to beat traffic by driving the wrong way down the A9.
Csaba Pasko was racing to pick up a client at Edinburgh Airport when he came across heavy congestion at the Pass of Birnam.
Rather than join the queue, the 49-year-old pumped the brakes and performed a U-turn in the middle of the southbound dual-carriageway.
He only managed to drive about 50 ft in the wrong direction before he was pulled over by police.
Gridlocked
Pasko, of Lurie Place, Edinburgh, appeared at Perth Sheriff Court and admitted a charge of careless driving on the A9 in December, last year.
Fiscal depute Joanne Ritchie said the offence happened just after 1pm.
“Mr Pasko was driving a private taxi at the time,” she said.
“Two police constables were in a stationary vehicle in the second lane of the carriageway.
“They were escorting a heavy vehicle at the time.”
She said: “At this time there was no traffic in lane two, apart from the police car.
“The first lane however was gridlocked.”
‘I don’t know what he was thinking’
Ms Ritchie said: “The accused approached this busy section of the road.
“He could see that it was congested and decided to turn his vehicle around. He began driving northwards on the southbound carriageway.”
She said: “The police saw what was happened. They activated their blue lights and turned around to follow the accused.
“A short distance later, he turned off at a junction.
“The accused stated to police that he was in a rush to pick up a fare from Edinburgh Airport.”
Pasko was allowed to continue driving, but police told him the matter would be reported to the procurator fiscal.
Solicitor Paul Ralph, representing Pasko, said: “I don’t know what he was thinking or how he was planning to get around the traffic.”
He said that his client ran a private taxi firm and that his driving licence was vital to his livelihood.
Sheriff Linda Smith fined him £300 and imposed four penalty points.
