Nurse wins court fight over Telford crash conviction
A nurse has successfully overturned a conviction for her involvement in a crash on a Telford industrial estate – because of the poor standard of its road markings.
Leila Zgolzelski was driving home from work when her Mini was involved in a collision with a Vauxhall Corsa at the Hortonwood Industrial Estate, resulting in the other car being written off and its two occupants suffering minor injuries.
She had been convicted at Telford Magistrates Court of driving without due care and attention in connection to the crash, which occurred on the evening of September 12, 2012.
But following a hearing lasting several hours at Shrewsbury Crown Court on Friday, her appeal against the decision was upheld.
Miss Zgolzelski, 29, of Aldridge Road, Great Barr, Birmingham, had been diverted from her usual route along the A442 by an accident.
She was taken through the Hortonwood estate, which she had never driven through before.
The court accepted her account that the accident occurred when after she did not see a sharp left-hand bend in the road and, believing she needed to go straight on, went towards an adjacent no-through road and ended up on the wrong side of the road.
The passenger side of her car, which was travelling within the speed limit at almost 40mph, collided with the passenger side of the other vehicle, which was headed in the opposite direction while in the process of going round the bend at about 15mph.
Miss Zgolzelski showed the court several photographs taken the day after the accident, which she said highlighted a lack of road markings and signs to indicate there was a 90-degree bend approaching.
Other images taken several months after showing the road with new lines on were also shown to the court.
She said the position of the no-through road on the corner of the bend and the location of street lights along it made it appear as though motorists were meant to continue straight on.
Miss Zgolzelski said she has since written to Telford & Wrekin Council, asking for improvements to be made in the area to assist motorists not familiar with the industrial estate.
Judge Peter Barrie, who heard the case alongside two magistrates, said it had not been a straight-forward decision.
But he added: "The appellant in this instance was without guidance as to the line the road would follow, which a responsible and prudent motorist might reasonably have expected to find in place."
