A Canterbury businessman is on trial for careless driving causing death, after a crash near Kaiapoi claimed the life of a popular barman

Ben Caldicott-Elwell died after his motorbike collided with a trailer on a Northern Motorway on-ramp near Kaiapoi in December 2017.

His wife, Samantha Caldicott-Elwell, has told the Christchurch District Court, they'd been at a family outing in Christchurch - and the 34-year-old was returning on his bike - while she followed in a car with their son.

They were supposed to meet in Rangiora, but he never turned up

The accused, who is in his fifties, was granted interim name suppression on the basis that he would suffer extreme hardship if he was named - and to protect the company he works for.

The judge alone trial is expected to last three days.