Man was walking on dual carriageway, inquest hears

A motorist has told an inquest into the death of a man who was walking on a dual carriageway when he was struck by a car that he did not have time to stop.

Peter Fitzgerald, 68, of O’Connell Court, Doughcloyne, Cork, was walking on the fast lane of the South Ring dual carriageway on the evening of December 20, 2012, when the incident occurred.

Two flyovers were being built at the time and there was no street lighting at the accident location, Cork Coroner’s Court heard.

Forensic collision investigator Garda Mark O’Connor said the dark clothing worn by Mr Fitzgerald would have made it very difficult to see him.

Mr Sweeney was travelling at between 59km/h and 71km/h in a 100km/h zone.

A postmortem by assistant state pathologist Dr Margaret Bolster found Mr Fitzgerald died from spinal cord injuries. He had a very low level of alcohol in the blood at the time, equivalent to one pint, Dr Bolster said.

A file was sent to the DPP and no prosecutions were directed.

A jury returned a verdict of accidental death.