Road smash near Cowdenbeath 'could have been catastrophic'

Lucy Taylor collided with another vehicle, sending it spinning into the central barrier and then off the road and colliding into trees.

Taylor, of Glendale, Leven, appeared in the dock at Dunfermline Sheriff Court.

She admitted that on March 12 last year on the A92 between Crossgates and Cowdenbeath, she drove carelessly.

Taylor drove in close proximity behind another vehicle, performed an undertaking manoeuvre, collided with a car, causing it to lose control, striking a central reservation and collide with trees, causing damage to both vehicles.

She also drove having consumed excess alcohol. Her reading was 190 microgrammes of alcohol in 100 millilitres of blood, the limit being 50 microgrammes.

Depute fiscal Andrew Brown said that at around 4.15am a man was driving home from work when he spotted Taylor’s car being driven erratically and at speed.

There was a collision and the man’s car went into a spin, hitting the central barrier then going off the road and colliding with trees.

Taylor’s vehicle came to a halt on the road, facing in the opposite direction to the way she had been travelling.

The man spoke to Taylor, asking if she was alright and she replied, “Yes I’m okay.”

He could smell alcohol from her and the police were contacted.

When officers arrived Taylor was in tears and “kept asking if she was going to jail”.

The depute added: “She said she thought she may have fallen asleep at the wheel.”

She was taken to the Victoria Hospital by ambulance and fell asleep when she got there.

Defence solicitor David McLaughlin said his client was the mother of four children.

She has a previous conviction from 2019 for being drunk in charge of a vehicle.

Sheriff Mark O’Hanlon told Taylor the consequences of her actions “could have been catastrophic”.

He banned her from driving for two years and imposed a community payback order with 165 hours of unpaid work and a year’s supervision.