A MAN found walking in the middle of a pitch black main road left drivers shocked, an inquest heard on Monday.

Witnesses said James Locke appeared to be looking down at his mobile phone, totally oblivious to oncoming traffic, on Chelford Road in Holmes Chapel on the evening of December 1, 2018.

One driver said he only had ‘a split second’ to avoid hitting him and had to take deep breaths afterwards, he felt so traumatised.

Another man was so concerned about the pedestrian’s safety, he rang the police.

Drivers said the man seemed ‘agitated’.

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The 25-year-old, from Canvey Island, had a date with a girl he met at a mental health unit in Essex, which had recently discharged him.

After getting a train from London to Crewe, he was trying to find his way to Goostrey, where she was staying with her grandparents.

A taxi driver had dropped him off at a lay by in Holmes Chapel because he only had £20.

The harrowing moment he stepped into the path of a Honda Jazz was described to a hearing in Warrington.

Fighting back tears, a retired midwife, who was driving home at around 5.40pm, said: “I only saw him seconds before he hit the car. It was very very sudden.

“He was walking towards me in the middle of the road.

“I braked and swerved to the right. I hit him even though I was taking as much avoiding action as I could. He was so close.”

A nurse travelling behind saw her car brake sharply and immediately stopped and carried out CPR.

Paramedics fought valiantly to try and revive James but there was no response.

Consultant pathologist Muhammed Al-Jafari carried out a post mortem examination.

Heath Westerman, assistant coroner for Cheshire said the autopsy confirmed that multiple external and internal injuries of the head, spine, chest, liver and spleen consistent with loss of blood led to instant death.

A toxicology report found various therapeutic drugs as well as cannabis and cocaine, but it is not known how long they had been in his system.

Mr Westerman said it was not possible to comment on the effect this may have had on James’ state of mind at the time of his death.

PC Andrew Fellows, a collision investigator, attended the accident scene at 6.45pm on the evening of the fatal crash.

The road was in a good state of repair and conditions were dry with clear visibility.

The vehicle involved in the crash had been examined and no evidence was found of any mechanical, tyre, brake or light failure that could have led to loss of control.

PC Fellows estimated the car had been travelling at between 39mph and 50mph at the time of the collision.

The driver would have only had between 1.6 and 2.6 seconds prior to before the crash to process what had happened, react and respond.

It would have been impossible to avert the collision, he said.

It is a very dark stretch of road with no street lights and the pedestrian was wearing dark clothes.

Police later retrieved James’ shoe from the roof of a farm outbuilding and found the back cover of a mobile phone on the carriageway.

Stephen Locke told the inquest he last saw his step son James when he dropped him off at a railway station in Essex at 1pm that afternoon.

“He had recently been discharged from a mental health unit and decided he wanted to visit a girl he had met there,” said Mr Locke.

“I was concerned. James did not have the mental capacity to make that journey but you didn’t argue with him.

“He wasn’t medicated and had refused his injections.”

James rang him at 5.15pm and said ‘it was a nightmare’ trying to find his way.

He had missed the right turning and was heading for another road, following directions on his phone.

The hearing continues.