Mark Chance, 25, pleaded guilty to a charge of careless driving after careering straight into the lights while trying to overtake a bicycling colleague.

His solicitor, Gary McIlravey, told Perth Sheriff Court it was “like the Titanic sailing inexorably towards the iceberg”.

He added: “His focus was on the primary hazard - the cyclist - and for some reason he did not see the oncoming hazard.

“Even police officers can make mistakes. It has not affected his career.”