BUS DRIVER’S APPEAL

Hokitika Guardian, 23 September 1929, Page 2

BUS DRIVER’S APPEAL

SUPREME COURT CASE

DECISION RESERVED.

CHRISTCHURCH, Sept. 21

In the Supreme Court, before Mr Justice Kennedy, yesterday afternoon, Sidney Ernest Clements, bus driver, appealed against the decision of the Magistrate in the Lower Court in convicting him of driving in a manner dangerous to tho public, and imposing affine of £6. The appellant, who is the proprietor of the Oxford-Christc-hurch bus service, was represented bv Mr A. T. Donnelly.

Mr J. D. Hutchison appeared for the respondent.

Mr Hutchison said that on April 24th, about 5 p.m., Inspector McGhee followed 'Clements along the Mniu North road for three miles approaching Belfast, and stopped him after ho passed a motor-lorry on the corner of Bedford street at 40 miles an hour.

Reginald John McGhee, traffic inspector for the Wfumairi County Council, said that he followed the appellant along tlie North road in the direction of Belfast. The speed was 35 miles an hour over a good part of tho journey, 30 miles an hour over John’s road intersection, and 40 miles an hour while passing a motorlerry on the corner of Bedford street. Witness stopped appellant shortly after the incident at Bedford Street, and appellant said that he had been driving at 25 miles an hour. John’s road was obscured to traffic approaching from the south by a- two-storey building which stood flush on the corner. There were bowser pumps and large signs, which also helped toobscure the street. There was a good deal of traffic about at the time, going north and south. At Bedford street appellant went right over on to his wrong side to pass a motorlorry, which was drawing a trailer. The width of the trailer was eight feet. Bedford -street was thickly studded with residences, while on the North road in the vicinity there were some" shops. Witness took the speed from ' his speedometer. A test had been made of Clements’s speedometer which registered wrongly. Clements had said that it was five miles* out.

To Mr Donnelly : The buses used by appellant were large ones, accommodating thirty passengers. Mr Donnelly: Did Clements drop in behind the motor-lorry for a time before' passing it ?—No.

Are you sure of that?—Yes, he passed it like he did everything else on the road.

Did Clements tell you that he had seen you following him in his rearvision mirror?—He did, but I did not believe him.

What was your reason for not believing him?—l considered that if he had seen me he would not have driven at the speed he did. . What will you say if the driver of the motor-lorry says that he did not notice anything unusual aboilt Clements’s speed when he passed his lorry? —He told me at the time that he had not noticed Clements go past him. Witness’s speedometer was working perfectly.

Ronald L. Kennett, South Island expert for the Stewart Speedometer Company, said that he submitted the speedometer of the inspector’s motorcar to a test last. September, and it was found to be O.lv. He gave the speedometer another test a short time ago, and it was again found O.K. In evidence the appellant said that he wa,s the owner of a bus service operating between Christchurch and Oxford. On the day in question he was driving towards John’s road at a shade under twentv-five miles an hour. He had seen the inspector following behind him. Witness remarked to his passengers that the motor inspector was following. He slowed clown to twenty-three miles an hour, and after passing John’s road pulled in behind a motor-lorry which was drawing a trailer. H'e had to slow clown to the, lorry’s speed until he could get a. chance to pass it. He followed the lorry for a few chains, and then, passed it at twenty-three miles an hour. The inspector was wrong when he said that witness had passed the lorry at forty miles an hour.

Janet Frances Thompson stated that she was a. passenger in Clements’s bus on the day in question. She heard Clements remark that the traffic inspector was following them. Several times witness looked at the speedometer and noticed that it was registering under twenty-five miles an hour. It had not reached thirty miles an hour approaching John’s road. Clements kept in behind the lorry for some distance before passing it. His speed.had to be the same as the lorry while lie was travelling behind it. Witness did not notice anything dangerous about the speed. Francis Welsh and Ruby Jackson also gave evidence. Leonard John Shepherd said that he was dyiving a lorrv with a trailer attached along the North road on the day in question. His speed was between seventeen and eighteen miles an hour. He was carrying forty-one halos of wool, which was an ordinary full load. He could not get more than 'eighteen miles an hour out of the lorry when it was fully landed. There was no speedometer on the lorry. Immediately prior to 'Clements passing witness, witness was not doing more than eighteen miles an hour. His Honour reserved his decision.