Lorry driver who killed cyclist after running a red light jailed for three years

Barry Meyer's driving was described as 'cavalier' by Judge Daniel Worsley

Barry Meyer's driving was described as 'cavalier' (PA)

A “cavalier” lorry driver who ran a red light before killing a cyclist has been jailed for three-and-a-half years and given a 10-year driving ban.

Barry Meyer, 53, of Walthamstow, East London, was driving a tipper truck during rush-hour in central London despite not having an HGV licence or insurance. He also had previous convictions for motoring offences, including drink-driving.

The victim, Alan Neve, 54, of Poplar, East London, was crushed by the front and back wheels of the lorry and his death was “almost instant”, the judge said.

A witness to the accident was “substantially psychiatrically damaged” by what they saw and has not been able to go back to the scene of the crash in Holborn in 2013, the court heard. A statement by Mr Neve’s widow, Penelope Johnson, was read to the court. “I loved Alan with all my heart and that he made me happier than anyone else in the world,” she said. “I felt like the luckiest woman in the world to have him as my husband.

“When Alan’s rucksack was brought back to our home from the scene of the accident, I took out his sandwich that he had made for lunch and froze it – it is still in the freezer. His pyjamas are still under his pillow. I smell them and imagine he is here.” Ms Johnson said her life “used to be vividly coloured and now it is black and white”.

Video footage from Meyer’s lorry and other vehicles showed he went through a red light, stopped in a yellow box junction and then ran over Mr Neve, who had right of way. Meyer’s view of the cyclist was blocked by a toilet roll and sat-nav holder on his dashboard.

Meyer had pleaded guilty to death by careless driving at an earlier hearing. Describing his driving as “cavalier”, Judge Daniel Worsley said Meyer’s previous convictions showed that he had a “wretched disregard for the safety of road users” and the effects of his actions had been “devastating beyond all measure”.

“You have been insistently lawless and selfish in your regard for other road users,” the judge told him. “Heaven knows why the lorry owners let you drive that vehicle without checking that you had an HGV licence.”