In recent news, it has been reported that a taxi driver reached speeds of 100mph in freezing conditions whilst he had passengers in his vehicle.
Neil Colquhoun told his two passengers, Victoria and Louise Guthrie to “shut up” when they asked him to slow down, as he raced along at dangerous speeds. Mr Colquhoun reached speeds of up to 70mph in built up areas that have a speed limit of 30mph. He then went on to overtake another vehicle on a blind bend. The two sisters were left feeling very “shaken” and to make matters worse, they recently lost their brother in a motorbike crash.
The sisters must have been terrified by the speeds that Mr. Colquhoun reached as he sped past the scene of one of Scotland’s worst road accidents. As they left Perth, Mr. Colquhoun overtook the vehicle on the blind bend and then went on to reach speeds of 100mph on the Burnbrae Straight near Methven where five people died in 2007 in a road accident. The sisters told Perth Sheriff Court that they watched the speedometer as Mr. Colquhoun continued to drive at speeds of 70mph as he drove through the village of Methven.
When the court asked Mr. Colquhoun why he was driving the way he was, he simply replied that he was an experienced driver who had used the road for many years. Mr. Colquhoun was found guilty of careless driving at excessive speed, he did, however, keep his licence.
This is a shocking story. Not only is it unacceptable to drive in this manner but Mr. Colquhoun clearly disregarded the safety of his passengers. Mr. Colquhoun was lucky to avoid causing an accident himself, the situation could have been much worse and I was very surprised to read that the taxi driver kept his licence. It is reported that Louise Guthrie rang the Police straight after the incident and also made a formal complaint to the taxi firm. Mr. Colquhoun apparently now plans on becoming a bus driver!
