An inquest has heard that an East Huntspill man was killed when he tried to overtake a lorry and his motorbike collided with an oncoming van.
Ian Barnard died on April 26 last year when his Kawazaki motorcycle collided with a Ford Transit van in Burnham Moor Lane.
An inquest held in late December heard that the 56-year-old man suffered several traumatic injuries and he was sadly pronounced dead at the scene despite a bid by witnesses and paramedics to revive him.
The inquest heard a statement from Christopher Young, the driver of the Ford Transit van, who said he was driving home along Burnham Moor Road at around 35mph when he saw a heavy goods lorry on the other side of the road.
Mr Young said that he saw the lorry on the other side of the road and couldn’t see if anything was behind it. He added that not long afterwards he saw a motorbike pull out from behind the lorry and into his path. The Ford Transit driver said he got out the van and called an ambulance for help.
A statement was read at the inquest from collision investigator PC Simon Wilson of Gloucestershire Police who said Mr Young’s van was travelling below the 60mph speed limit at the time of the incident but the speed at which Mr Barnard was travelling could not be determined.
PC Wilson said Mr Young attempted to brake and swerve before the two vehicles collided. There was no evidence Mr Barnard applied his brakes before the crash.
The inquest heard a statement from Jeffery French, a vehicle examiner for Avon and Somerset Police, who said there were no faults with Mr Barnard’s bike or Mr Young’s Ford Transit van.
A toxicology report revealed Mr Barnard had no drugs or alcohol in his system at the time of the collision. A post mortem report concluded that he died as a result of multiple traumatic injuries.
Motorcyclist dies in crash with van in Burnham Moor Lane, Highbridge
