A jury has heard that a "dangerous defect" in a smart motorway system was the "overwhelming" cause of a fatal crash on the M4 in which a 68-year-old woman died.
Barry O'Sullivan was driving a Ford Transit Connect van when he collided with a Nissan Micra on 7 March 2022, between junctions 11 and 12 of the motorway. The car had stopped in the outside lane after suffering engine failure, but no warnings had been activated on overhead signs.
Ian Bridge, defending O'Sullivan, said the "dominant and overwhelming cause" of the collision was the defective stranded-vehicle system, which had not been working for five days. He added that neither motorists nor National Highways appeared to be aware of the fault, and that 999 and 101 calls were not passed to the control room.
Prosecutor Ian Hope accepted that the collision would probably not have happened if the smart motorway system had been functioning properly, but argued it was not inevitable, and that road users still had a duty to obey the rules of the road. He noted that 35 other vehicles had safely avoided the stationary Nissan before the defendant's van approached.
The court heard that the van was travelling at 77mph with a constant speed for five seconds before impact, and that O'Sullivan was not wearing a seatbelt. A steering movement began less than half a second before the collision. The passenger, Pulvinder Dhillon, died after the car burst into flames.
Ms Dene, the driver, had activated her hazard lights and attempted to restart the car, while her son searched online for a remedy. The vehicle had been stationary for around six minutes before the crash, during which time several motorists had called police.
