A Black Country council has been ordered to pay £50,000 in fines and costs after a worker was killed when he was hit by a loading bucket at its road maintenance depot.

The council was charged alongside Michael Lilley, aged 62, who admitted driving irresponsibly and causing the death of maintenance manager Tony Pagett.

Mr James Puzey, prosecuting for the Health and Safety Executive (HSE), said Lilley drove a wheeled loader at the depot in Lister Road, Dudley, the wrong way around a one-way system in October 2006.

It was driven with the bucket at the front of the loader four or five foot off the ground. The guideline amount was 18 inches.

This obstructed Lilley’s view and he did not see Mr Pagett standing in the depot briefing two other workers.

They shouted a warning but were too late, Mr Puzey said, and the bucket hit Mr Pagett in the shoulder.

He suffered “massive” internal injuries and was pronounced dead.

Lilley, aged 62, of Foster Crescent, Kinver, was fined £750 and ordered to pay £500 costs. Dudley Council was fined £30,000 and ordered to pay costs of £20,000 after admitting two charges of failing to ensure a safe working environment.

Mr Timothy Green, for Lilley, said his client had an “impeccable” recordsince the 1980s. He said workers drove the wrong way around the one-way system to save time during busy periods, as shown on CCTV footage examined for the four weeks leading up to the accident.

While Lilley had known it was wrong the boundary between good and safe practice and otherwise had become “blurred”.

Dudley Council admitted failing to organise the work area so pedestrians and vehicles could circulate safely and failing to introduce, maintain and enforce a safe system of work.

Mr Barry Berlin, for the council said: “Since the incident, just about everything that could have been done has been done.” Judge Anjad Nawaz said it was a very tragic case and life could not be restored.” As Lilley was now retired and on a fixed income a fine of £750 and costs of £500 was appropriate, the court heard.