The pair thought it would be ‘entertaining’
A “reckless” and “stupid” van driver deliberately drove very close to a “vulnerable” cyclist in a “highly dangerous” act of bravado – before his passenger leaned out of the window and “whipped” the cyclist with a phone cable. Father-of-six Reece Austin and his passenger thought that it would be “entertaining” to intimidate and frighten the shocked cyclist with their irresponsible antics, Hull Crown Court heard.
Austin, 31, of Malthouse Lane, Bridlington, admitted an offence of dangerous driving on May 26 last year. He originally denied the offence but later changed his plea.
Katy Welford, prosecuting, said that, at about 9.13am, a cyclist was heading on the narrow B1253 country road towards Rudston, near Bridlington, when a Ford Transit van overtook him and passed very close to him. The van’s front passenger leaned out of the window and whipped the cyclist with what seemed to be phone charging cable.
Laughing was heard from the van in video of the incident. “The defendant did drive purposely close to the victim,” said Miss Welford. The cyclist later said: “I was very shocked that someone could behave this way. I was left bewildered as to why someone would consider this acceptable behaviour.
“Fortunately, I am not easily intimidated. I am determined not to allow the actions of others to affect me. It has caused me to feel anxious and nervous while cycling. “My wife will no longer cycle on open roads. The consequences could have been catastrophic. I believe that people like this should not be allowed to drive on our roads.”
Molly Minter, mitigating, said that Austin had no excuse for his actions. “It was a stupid thing to do, an immature thing to do,” said Miss Minter. “He doesn’t shy away from the fact that his behaviour was unacceptable and he has a great deal of remorse.”
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Austin claimed that the laughter heard in the video of the incident was not coming from him. He had five daughters and a son, including a baby, and if one of his children had been injured in such an incident, he would have been devastated. He had previously worked self-employed selling second hand clothes and a driving ban would affect any work he did. He was on Universal Credit and had debts of £5,150.
Recorder Caroline Sellars said that Austin thought that it would be “entertaining” to drive his van close to a cyclist and for his passenger to lean out and whip the man with phone charging cable. “This was a short-lived, incredibly stupid act of driving,” said Recorder Sellars.
“It was highly dangerous, particularly given the act of your passenger, of which you were clearly aware. The cyclist was a vulnerable road user. “You have lost employment opportunities because of your actions and the loss of your licence. Your behaviour was reckless, immature and stupid.”
Austin was given 60 hours’ unpaid work and he was banned from driving for one year. He must pass an extended retest before he can drive legally again.