Family of grandmother run over by HGV call for weight restriction on Rainford roads

Former teacher Liz Taylor, died on July 19, 2017, after being knocked down and dragged under the HGV when crossing Church Road in Rainford village.

An inquest at Southport Town Hall last month heard that the driver had not realised "at any point" that he had made contact with Mrs Taylor, who had crossed the road directly in front of his cabin.

He then continued on his route and stopped approximately five miles later when he was alerted to what had happened.

Evidence given during the inquest, which ruled it as an accidental death, described how the driver could not see Mrs Taylor, who was 24 inches shorter than the base of the truck’s windscreen, and could not feel the impact due to the sheer weight of the truck.

The driver was cutting through Rainford on his route, rather than using the bypass – and was not making a delivery in the village.

After the family raised their concerns at the inquest about HGVs using routes in Rainford village, the coroner advised the family to take up the issue with St Helens Council.

Liz's children Emma Wiley and Simon Taylor added that if it had been a smaller vehicle their 73-year-old mother "may still be alive today".

They said: "We accept that businesses within Rainford village need to be able to have deliveries but these deliveries could be made in smaller vehicles that don't compromise the safety of pedestrians.

"The size of the vehicle involved in our mother's accident meant that there were blind spots in the driver's vision and the weight of the vehicle meant no impact was felt on collision.

"If it had been a smaller, lighter vehicle, our mother may still be alive today.

"The vehicle that killed her was not making a delivery to any of the shops in the village so there was no reason why it needed to take that route.

"It is the size of these vehicles that is the main factor for our concerns, rather than speed.

"The accident happened at low speed and in slow moving traffic and given that Rainford is a very busy village with vehicles constantly parked along its main street and traffic backed up at times due to buses etc, there is a considerable risk that this scenario may happen again.

"If drivers of these large vehicles cannot see potential hazards, then people's safety is at risk, particularly vulnerable members of the community such as the elderly and children.

"Isn't it then posing a danger to the community of Rainford to allow vehicles of this size to be routed through a densely populated village centre? This seems even more poignant since Rainford has a bypass which was created surely for this very purpose.

"We would suggest that there is a case to put a weight restriction on Church Road to deter larger vehicles from routing through the centre of the village.

"Ultimately, we do not want this kind of tragedy to happen to someone else's loved one and we don't believe the council should place business above peoples' safety and lives."

St Helens Council has stated that Church Road is "expected to accommodate all types of vehicular traffic".

A St Helens Council spokesman, added: "The council wishes to express its deepest sympathy and offer its sincerest condolences to the family and friends of Mrs Taylor.

"The incident was a tragic accident and we would be happy to meet the family to understand their concerns.

“However, Church Road forms part of the main distributor route that passes through Rainford village that allows for the servicing of local facilities including shops and also farm traffic.

"It is nationally classified as the B5203 and as such, is expected to accommodate all types of vehicular traffic, including heavy goods vehicles."