Stuart Usherwood, 34, was charged with dangerous driving causing death after the accident on the Ballarat-Daylesford Road at Gong Gong on May 21, 2017.

Mr May, 63, was riding his motorcycle when the accident occurred.

He was airlifted to The Alfred hospital in Melbourne with serious injuries and spent a week in a critical condition before he tragically died.

Usherwood appeared in the County Court at Ballarat on Friday for a plea hearing before Judge Frank Saccardo. However, it was adjourned to another date for further reports to be obtained.

Some members of Mr May's family were in the court room for the hearing.

As well as his time as mayor, Mr May was well known as the Greens candidate for the seat of Ripon in the 2014 state election.

The Blampied organic farmer was renowned across the country for his environmental activism.

He served as the chairman of the National Association for Sustainable Agriculture and also drove the Branch Out employment project.

Mr May's wife was Mount Clear College teacher Vivien Hodgins, who tragically died in a tsunami that hit Samoa in 2009.

Mr May was remembered as a person who had made a huge contribution to public life across the region.

The mayor at the time, Sebastian Klein, said Mr May's contribution to municipal and community life over the decades of his life was unmistakable.

A public memorial service was held in Daylesford in honour of Mr May.

Judge Saccardo remanded Usherwood in custody until the plea hearing in July.

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