Teenager dies after 'lying in road'

A teenager who died after being hit by a car is believed to have lain down on a road on the way home from a party.

Jason Boland, 18, received fatal injuries after being struck by a Hyundai Lantra car at about 0630 BST on Sunday morning.

Mr Boland is thought to have become tired during a 15 mile walk home from Mid-Calder, West Lothian, to Shotts, Lanarkshire.

The driver immediately phoned emergency services on his mobile phone but the teenager died at the scene.

Mr Boland's parents David and Mildred, who live in Shotts, were being comforted by their other two sons, Daniel and Mark.

Expressed shock

Mrs Boland, who works in a local charity shop, said: "It was definitely not a hit-and-run. It is not something we can talk about just now."

Locals in the town expressed their shock and described Jason as a quiet, likeable person.

James McHugh, 19, a former school friend of Jason's from Calderhead High School in Shotts, said his nickname was "Biker" because of his passion for motorbikes.

He said: "We had all heard that a young lad from Shotts had died but we had no idea who it was. I found out later that it was 'Wee Biker'.

Road closed

"I went to school with him and he was a likeable guy. He was quite popular.

"I will remember him when he was younger flying about with his brother on the back of a motorbike."

Police closed the B7015 Livingston to Fauldhouse road for six hours after the accident as investigators examined the scene, just a few hundred yards from the Freeport shopping village.

A police spokesman said: "An 18-year-old male was struck by an L-registered Hyundai driven by a middle-aged local man which resulted in the youth sustaining fatal injuries.

"We would appeal to anyone with information or who may have seen the accident to come forward to help with our inquiries."