Roads are dangerous at the best of times but when offenders drive dangerously, speed, or get behind the wheel of a car while under the influence it can be lethal.
Many people have lost their lives as a result of a minority of drivers who show an utter lack of respect to their fellow motorists, pedestrians and the emergency services. Some become involved in high speed pursuits from the police while others fail to stop at the scene of an accident.
Here is a roundup of some of the most dangerous drivers who have appeared before courts in Wales over the last year.
Eric Vice
Bus driver Eric Vice crashed into a low railway bridge and killed a passenger after taking a different route to try to avoid a traffic jam.
Much of the upper deck of the bus was ripped away when Vice took the bus under the bridge in the Landore area of Swansea in December 12, 2019, causing catastrophic and fatal injuries to university academic Jessica Jing Ren and injuring a dozen more passengers.
Miss Hughes said passengers would later describe the sound of glass "exploding", the bus being suddenly plunged into darkness, and then all that could be heard were the groans and shouts of those trapped and injured.
The 64-year-old, who had been a bus driver for 40 years, pleaded guilty to causing death by dangerous driving and causing serious injury.
Vice was sentenced to two-and-a-half years imprisonment and disqualified from driving for four years at Swansea Crown Court on January 23.
Cecil Scott
Courier driver Cecil Scott, 62, killed motorist Jeffrey Paul Williams after his car hit him from behind at 70mph on the M4 near Newport.
The defendant was found guilty of causing death by dangerous driving in the "catastrophic collision" on the eastbound carriageway of the M4 near junction 29 on June 21, 2018. Mr Williams, 56, from Cwmbran, died at the scene as a result of injuries.
The professional driver who picked up vehicles and delivered them to locations across the UK, was seen to "faint" by a colleague earlier in the day of Mr Williams' death.
A witness described Scott, who was driving a Honda 4x4, as "not appearing to slow down at all" prior to the collision and he "did not believe he saw any brake light".
Scott, of of Ashfield, Stantonbury, in Milton Keynes, was sentenced to four and a half years in prison. He was also disqualified from driving for six years and three months at Cardiff Crown Court on January 12.
Luke Fox
Provisional driving licence holder Luke Fox sped away from the police and crashed into another car causing it to spin and flip onto its roof.
The 23-year-old, who was struggling to pass his theory test, bought a car and got behind the wheel anyway but fled when he saw police because he was not insured.
A police officer saw the defendant driving a silver Honda Civic in High Street in Blackwood at 1.10pm on Sunday, February 23.
He collided with a blue Ford Fiesta, with the front of his car hitting the back passenger door, causing the Fiesta to spin 180 degrees, flip onto its roof, and hit a parked car. He left the scene without stopping and the officer called off the chase to stay with the injured driver Helen Vaughan, who was trapped upside down.
He was given a 12-month prison sentence, suspended for 18 months, and ordered to complete 150 hours of unpaid work plus 10 days of rehabilitation at Cardiff Crown Court on June 3 last year.
Stefan Ulchianu
Drink driver Stefan Ulchianu was more than three times over the legal alcohol limit and had been on a bar crawl when he ploughed into Abeer Bilal.
The mother-of-four couldn't remember what happened next until she woke up in a hospital bed. Her heart had stopped beating while she was in intensive care.
The hit-and-run happened in Newport Road in Cardiff just before 11.20pm on April 10, 2019.
Abeer, 40, had just been to Costa Coffee when the black Audi came hurtling through the night and mowed her down. She was thrown into the air and landed on the kerb.
The defendant did not stop and told his passenger he would speak to police in the morning because he had been drinking.
He was jailed for three years and two months and disqualified from driving for four years, at Cardiff Crown Court on June 12 last year.
Gareth Williams
Burglar Gareth Williams became involved in a police chase in a stolen car which saw him driving at speed down the wrong side of a dual carriageway.
The 43-year-old broke into a family's home in Cardiff on October 3 last year after climbing through a kitchen window which had been left open.
He then stole a number of electrical items including laptops, iPads and mobile phones before stealing the homeowner Lucy O'Neil's Volkswagen Polo parked outside.
After the burglary was reported to police, they traced Williams to the A470 near Pontypridd but when approached by police vehicles he sped off, drove onto the opposite side of the carriageway and drove through a locked gate on Treforest Industrial Estate.
He was sentenced to four years imprisonment and disqualified from driving for two years, at Cardiff Crown Court on March 12.
Russell Flynn
Russell Flynn ran over a grandmother and carried her on his car bonnet for 58 metres after her son confronted him for killing a dog.
The 41-year-old carried out a hit and run in Cardiff on September 19 last year, which left Jan Agius with a fractured skull and her son Louis Thomas with broken hands.
Flynn became aggressive after running over a dog in Stanway Road, Ely, at around 4pm and tried to leave the scene. But after he was confronted by Mr Thomas, he drove at him at speed and carried him on the bonnet of his silver Mazda car before hitting Ms Agius who was also thrown onto the bonnet.
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Mr Thomas rolled off the bonnet after travelling around 20 metres but Ms Agius was knocked unconscious when she came off the vehicle after travelling 58 metres.
The defendant was sentenced to four years imprisonment and was disqualified from driving for seven years, at Cardiff Crown Court on March 18.
Justin Dean Jones
Justin Dean Jones, 30, streamed video of himself racing through residential streets at speeds well in excess of 100mph, a court has heard.
He posted a total of four clips on Facebook in what a judge said was a sign of his "warped pride" in what he was doing.
The alarm was raised by somebody in Canada who watched the videos and was so concerned at their contents that they contacted police in Wales.
Two of the clips showed the defendant driving around Llanelli at speeds touching 110mph.
In the footage Jones can be heard laughing and boasting as he drives on the wrong side of the road, ignores solid white lines, races another car through a pedestrian crossing, and drives through residential streets at breakneck speeds.
The defendant was jailed for two years and was disqualified from driving for four years, at Swansea Crown Court on November 27 last year.
Lee Jackson
Lee Jackson, 33, caused a pedestrian "catastrophic injuries" when he ran him over as he crossed the road.
The car then struck the wall of the Miramar Hotel in Llanelli, causing a crack some 20ft long.
He then drove off and left the gravely injured man laying in the road.
His victim was hospitalised for a month following the collision and was left unable to work, suffering from memory loss and needing crutches.
The defendant was sentenced to 22 months imprisonment and was disqualified from driving for years, at Swansea Crown Court on December 4 last year.
Anthony Summerhayes
Anthony Summerhayes, 35, stole a car from a garage forecourt then raced away from police on the M4 at speeds of up to 130mph - before assaulting an officer who tried to arrest him.
The owner of the seven seater Mazda had left the keys in his vehicle at the Texaco garage on Newport Road in Old St Mellons, Cardiff, in the late evening of February 17, while he went inside to pay. The defendant jumped inside and drove off with a 'screeching noise'.
He became involved in a police chase and drove up to speeds of 130mph as he tried to shake them off swerving and slowing down then increasing his speed, almost causing them to collide with the crash barriers.
When he was stopped and officers tried to arrest him, the defendant attempted to swing a clenched fist at him. He then struck the officer with his shoulder causing him to fall to the ground. He continued to resist violently by kicking out.
He was sentenced to a total of 22 months and disqualified from driving for four years, at Cardiff Crown Court on April 2.
Gareth Hurst
Gareth Hurst, 36, reached speeds of more than 100mph in a police chase while a child was sat in the passenger seat.
He tried to evade capture by the police who became suspicious when he turned his car around and drove off at speed upon seeing them.
The chase, which was caught on camera, took place between Newport and Bridgend as Hurst drove onto the A48.
He eventually pulled over and got out of the vehicle and during his arrest he told the officer he had become nervous as he had no insurance.
The defendant was sentenced to six months imprisonment suspended for 18 months and was ordered to carry out 150 hours unpaid work, at Cardiff Crown Court on January 7.
He was also disqualified from driving for three years.
