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Bus death man was looking other way

A grandfather who died after being hit by a bus stepped out in front of the moving vehicle while looking in the other direction, an inquest heard.

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Michael Wilkinson walked out in front of the single-deck bus about a second before being struck at the junction of King Street and Flood Street in Dudley.

The 69-year-old, who lived in Highfield Road, Kates Hill, suffered serious injuries and died the following day at Queen Elizabeth Hospital.

Pc Paul Robbins, a collision investigator, told the inquest in Smethwick that there were five cameras on the bus which recorded the accident, which happened near the entrance of the Churchill Shopping Centre on March 24.

He said the traffic light at the junction was showing green for the bus, which was moving at between 15 and 16mph. The speed limit on the road is 20mph.

The officer said Mr Wilkinson stepped out at a crossing at the junction.

He added: "One camera showed the bus going to the traffic lights and the sun was in front of the driver.

"It shows the traffic lights on green and the bus go through the lights travelling across the junction and toward the crossing.

"It shows there was a man standing on the footpath at the crossing and when the bus gets close to him he stepped into the road.

"It shows him looking to his left, away from the bus. The last image of the man still shows him looking to his left. He was knocked off his feet and came to rest on the road."

Pc Robbins said it took motorists up to two seconds to react to a hazard in front of them.

He added: "He (the driver) was unlikely to have time to take avoidance action before he hit him (Mr Wilkinson)."

Assistant coroner Zafar Siddique concluded he died as a result of the road traffic collision.

He said: "He (Mr Wilkinson) stepped into the path of a bus while looking in the opposite direction.

"There was a collision and he received fatal injuries as a result."

Mr Wilkinson was a trainee carpenter before working as a machine operative at Ewarts in Birmingham Road for 20 years.

He worked until the age of 65. He left behind widow Ann and children Stuart and Tracy.

Following the inquest, Stuart, 44, said: "We don't know what was happening when he crossed the road, and never will. The family still misses him badly."

Since Mr Wilkinson's death, work has started to reopen King Street to all traffic. It has previously been open to buses and cars only.

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