Video: Birmingham driver narrowly misses woman pushing a buggy over zebra crossing

A driver who narrowly missed a woman pushing a buggy over a zebra crossing in Birmingham has become the first to get a suspended prison sentence.

The motorist was filmed driving on the wrong side of the road and over the white lines after the woman had already started crossing. Another motorist caught the near miss, which happened on Yardley Wood Road, Billesley, on camera and sent it in to West Midlands Police.

The driver was summonsed to court, where they admitted dangerous driving. They were jailed for 24 weeks, suspended for a year, and banned from driving for a year.

They were fined £400 and ordered to do 100 hours of unpaid work. Police have released the footage, along with a clip of a driver performing a U-turn on the Aston Expressway, and another driver heading down a shared-use route for pedestrians and cyclists and straight into the path of a girl on a skateboard. She’s seen throwing her arms up in disbelief as the driver passes her with inches to spare.

The number of submissions to the police portal hit a new high of 854. And 92% of those resulted in a positive outcome, which includes warning letters, education courses, fines or court appearances.

What has West Midlands Police said?

Sgt Jordan Keen, who leads the team, said: “The team goes from strength to strength, and you can see from the footage we’ve released this month that some really dangerous and careless drivers have been held to account for their actions on the roads of the West Midlands.

“We hope that by showing these clips, drivers will think twice about running a red light, or dangerously overtaking other road users, all for the sake of saving a few seconds.

“This is about educating drivers and preventing road users – be they cyclists, pedestrians or motorists – from being killed or seriously injured.”