Drivers must have "particular regard to vulnerability of cyclists", judge says

A Dublin Bus driver has been convicted of careless driving causing the death of a cyclist following a collision on Burlington Road in November 2014. Osborn Irabor, aged fifty-eight and based in Tyrrelstown, pleaded not guilty to the charge but was found guilty at Dublin Circuit Criminal Court following a jury trial. The incident occurred when Irabor's double-decker bus struck Mary White as she cycled towards a T-junction at approximately 9.40 pm on November 17th, 2014. Ms White sustained serious head injuries and died two days later in hospital. Evidence presented during the trial established that the bus had cut the corner at the junction, crossing a solid white line onto the incorrect side of the road and placing the cyclist in a blind spot created by the vehicle's wing mirror. A forensic collision investigator testified that the corner-cutting manoeuvre was characteristic of the road layout, with observations of at least three other Dublin Bus vehicles performing similar movements at the same junction. The defence contended that the incident resulted from visibility constraints on a dark winter evening rather than careless driving, though Ms White had been wearing reflective clothing and operating functioning bicycle lights. At sentencing on November 12th, Judge Francis Comerford emphasised that drivers must exercise particular regard for the vulnerability of cyclists on public roads. The judge acknowledged Irabor's previously clean safety record during his tenure with Dublin Bus since 2007 and determined that imprisonment was not warranted. However, Irabor received a mandatory four-year driving disqualification effective from January 1st, 2019, a penalty likely to result in the loss of his employment. The conviction was subsequently upheld on appeal in October 2021, with the Court of Appeal rejecting arguments that the trial judge had failed to adequately explain legal terminology to the jury.