M40: Death of HGV driver after Wheatley crash unexplained

It is believed that Justin Buxton, 53, was incapacitated when he died in April this year after the HGV he was driving northbound on the motorway near Wheatley drifted across the lanes and crashed into a bridge.

Originally from Cawston, Rugby, Mr Buxton was an experienced driver who had previously worked for Pertemps Network Group, served in the Royal Corps of Transport and was most recently a full-time driver for DHL, a German delivery company.

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Justin Buxton, from Warwickshire, died in the crash. (Image: Facebook) Mr Buxton was declared dead at the scene by paramedics and an inquest at Oxford Coroner’s Court today (October 24) ruled that his cause of death was a severe head injury caused by a road traffic collision.

However, the coroner was unable to specify what caused Mr Buxton to lose control of his lorry, speculating that sleep or an undiagnosed medical condition could have been to blame.

Just before junction 8A, the vehicle began drifting from lane one, the ‘slow lane’, across lanes two and three and hit the barrier in the central reservation.

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It travelled along the barrier for a short time before colliding head on with a concrete pillar holding up the overhead bridge, which it bounced off before coming to stop across lanes two and three.

Witness statements from other drivers read out in court described the deafening noise they heard through car windows due to the force of the crash.

Statements confirmed that at the time of the crash road and weather conditions were good and there was no mechanical fault with the vehicle.

The coroner also confirmed there was no doubt of the driver’s experience and there were no drugs or alcohol in his system.

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An expert witness, PC Ruben Hill of Thames Valley Police who specialises in forensic reconstruction of road traffic collisions, explained that no attempt was made by the driver to correct the course of the lorry.

Up to the point of the crash, the vehicle was travelling at a consistent pace below the speed limit with steering input from the driver, suggesting that “cruise control” may have been activated but he remained fully engaged.

It is therefore believed that the driver was in some way incapacitated, either by sleep or a medical episode, seconds before the collision.

In a book of condolence opened by Oxford Mail at the time of the death, relative Jemma Johnson wrote: “A loving husband, dad, grandad, brother and son, who has left a massive hole in our family.

“Your laugh and strength will forever be missed.”

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