Satnav leads driver to 100ft drop

 

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By Stuart Turton

Posted on 25 Mar 2009 at 17:55

A careless driver is facing charges after nearly driving his BMW off a cliff at the behest of his satnav.

According to reports in the Halifax Evening Courier, Robert Jones was on his way to visit friends in Yorkshire on a Sunday morning.

His satnav directed him up a "steep, narrow footpath" which led to a fence, beyond which lay a cliff and a 100ft drop.

Unfortunately, Jones wasn't in a position to enjoy the views as his car was stuck and slipping towards the edge. He promptly called the AA, which declined the offer to pull him off the edge of the abyss and instead directed him to the police.

It took rescue crews nine hours to manoeuvre Jones away from the brink and back on to the main road, after which he was charged with driving without due care and attention.

"It kept insisting the path was a road, even as it was getting narrower and steeper, so I just trusted it," he told the newspaper.

"You don't expect to be taken nearly over a cliff. I guess I'm just lucky the car didn't slip all the way over the edge."

In a rather startling display of understatement a police spokesperson said: "When someone nearly drives off a cliff that shows a lack of care which needs to be investigated."