Greiving son told his dying father is no excuse for speeding

A Sydney man caught speeding as he rushed to see his dying father take his final breath has been refused his request to have the fine dismissed out of compassion.

On January 25, voice coach Marcus West was snapped travelling at 80km/h in a 60km/h zone by a fixed speed camera on Military Rd, in northern Sydney, The Daily Telegraph reports.

He was on his way to Greenwich Hospital where his father, former principal of exclusive Anglican college Trinity Grammar, Roderick West, 82, was dying of liver cancer.

Mr West was 10 minutes late to catch his father's last breath and later discovered that he had also been fined for speeding during his mercy dash to the hospital.

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In a bid to avoid the fine, Mr West sent a copy of his father's death certificate to the Office of State Revenue.

But he was told that despite his "difficult personal circumstances", it would only consider scratching the fine if he had an unblemished driving record for 10 years.

Mr West said that he has only had one or two speeding fines in that period.

"If there are ever going to be mitigating circumstances then the middle of the night on a six-lane road trying to reach my father before he's breathed his last, that would be it," he said.

"I just think it's miserly, it's mean (to not waive the fine)."

Mr West said he will fight the fine in court.