A biker suffered multiple fractures, underwent surgery and will now require “long-term” convalescence after a “catastrophic” collision with a motorist near a busy motorway.
Perth Sheriff Court heard that the motorcyclist came off his bike following the accident on a slip road of the M90 Inverkeithing to Perth motorway and had to have metal plates surgically fitted.
Peter Powrie (29), of Deas Road, Inverkeithing, admitted that on September 8 last year, on the B9097 Gairneybank to Cleish road, near to its slip road with the M90 Inverkeithing to Perth motorway, he drove carelessly and collided with a motorcycle, injuring its driver.
Depute fiscal Stuart Richardson told the court that there were roadworks on the M90 and that Powrie had to make a “convoluted” trip north before coming off a road and then making his way home southwards.
“The accused simply never saw the motorcyclist and began his turn,” he said.
“The consequences were pretty catastrophic, with the motorcyclist having to go to hospital, where he underwent surgery after suffering multiple fractures.”
Defending himself, Powrie, an offshore worker, told the court that he had just moved to Inverkeithing when the collision happened and was not “100% sure of the roads”.
He said: “I was driving on the slip road and was travelling slow at a cautionary rate. I never saw the biker and am really, really sorry about what happened to him.”
Sheriff Michael Fletcher said Powrie’s case was “near the top end of the careless driving scale”. He imposed a £400 fine and eight penalty points.