A SHERIFF has dismissed suggestions that a motorist may have been travelling at up to 82mph in the seconds before a crash which killed him and his brother.
David Black and his brother Stuart crashed on Maybury Road in November 2005 returning from the funeral of their young niece.
Stuart, 31, died on arrival at hospital, while David, 37, spent 16 months in hospital before dying of an infection in May
last year.
At the summing up of the Fatal Accident Inquiry into the two men's deaths yesterday, Sheriff Kenneth Maciver said he was unlikely to come to the conclusion that Mr Black's Audi had been going in excess of 80mph when the accident happened.
The inquiry had previously heard that the men's car could have been travelling at up to 82mph and on the wrong side of the road.
The inquiry has focused on whether bollards on a traffic island near the accident scene were properly lit and has heard how there had been six accidents near the crash site in the two years leading up to the incident.
He addressed David Black's widow Gail and the two men's mother and brother, saying: "I want to give my sympathies to the family. I understand that it has been a long process.
I know all three of you in court today have been here for every minute of this accident inquiry.
"You have heard every piece of evidence and it's only right that I deal with it all when I deliver my determination."
The sheriff is expected to reach his verdict by the middle of July.
An investigation carried out by road safety consultant Malcolm Bulpitt, commissioned by the family of the two men, found their Audi had hit an unlit and unmarked traffic island as David Black attempted to overtake, colliding with a Range Rover travelling in the opposite direction.
Stuart Black, who had moved from Edinburgh to Somerset shortly before the crash, was being driven to the airport by his brother at the time of the accident.
He was pronounced dead on arrival at ERI.
David Black spent over a year in hospital and was left confined to a wheelchair until he died.
Last year, campaigners welcomed plans for a series of safety measures on Maybury Road after a reported 20 crashes in just three years. Among the measures were plans to reduce the speed limit at the accident black-spot from 60mph to 40mph.
The full article contains 417 words and appears in Edinburgh Evening News newspaper.
