PAST CRaSHES
Following Friday’s bus crash at Westboro Station, we look back at some past crashes and related incidents involving OC Transpo and the Transitway.
April 23, 1987: An Ottawa firefighter received internal injuries, a broken left leg, a broken jaw and cheekbone, plus a bruised arm and head and chest injuries after a fire service car collided with an Orléans-bound OC Transpo bus at the intersection of the Industrial Road extension and the Transitway. One passenger, a female, was slightly injured. She was treated for a knee laceration.
Jan. 18, 1988: Six people were taken to hospital after two OC Transpo buses and a car collided at an intersection near Riverside Drive and the Transitway. Police blamed the crash on icy road conditions. An articulated bus slid into the rear of another bus, causing the second bus to collide with a car. Police said one person had broken bones, while others received bumps and bruises.
Oct. 29, 1990: A head-on collision between a minivan and OC Transpo bus on Route 38 heading toward Orléans sent six people to hospital shortly before 5:30 p.m. The bus driver and four passengers were treated for minor injuries. The lone occupant of the minivan required surgery, but his injuries were not considered life-threatening. The bus driver was subsequently charged with driving left of the centre line.
July 19, 2003: An OC Transpo bus on Route 86 Elmvale slammed into a bus shelter at the Lees Avenue station at 7:50 a.m. People waiting in the shelter escaped unharmed, but six passengers required hospital treatment for cuts and bruises from flying glass and debris. The bus driver was subsequently found guilty of dangerous driving causing bodily harm and sentenced to four months of house arrest, probation and banned from driving for a year. He also lost his job. July 13, 2003: Jude Appuhamy, 33, his wife Kanchana, 23, and 18-monthold son Chamin were parked in a bus lane on Highway 174 east of Montreal Road after their rented car experienced mechanical problems. An OC Transpo bus rammed the car from behind, killing Chamin, paralyzing his father from the chest down and leaving his mother with a badly broken arm. The bus driver was charged and was subsequently found not guilty. Nov. 9, 2004: A man was critically injured after he was hit by an OC Transpo bus at the corner of Albert and Metcalfe streets.
Feb. 2, 2005: Six people were injured, one seriously, in a collision between an OC Transpo bus on Route 95 and a car at the intersection of Booth Street and the Transitway. The 21-year-old car driver was hospitalized with chest and abdominal injuries. A 27-year-old bus passengers had pelvic area injuries and a fractured leg, while other passengers had bumps and bruises.
Oct. 19, 2005: Twelve OC Transpo passengers were treated for minor injuries after a westbound No. 95 bus rear-ended a stopped express bus during the morning rush hour at the St. Laurent Transitway station.
Aug. 18, 2010: Two eastbound OC Transpo buses collided at Cyrville Transitway station at about 3:40 p.m. A paramedic spokesman said four people, including a man in his 30s and a woman in her 40s, were treated at the scene for injuries including back, neck and rib cage pain.
Feb. 7, 2012: Buses on Route 61 and Route 98 crashed on the Transitway just west of Holland Avenue during the afternoon rush hour. The driver of one of the buses was later charged by police with failing to yield safely. Paramedics transported 11 passengers and one of the drivers to hospital for minor injuries such as neck pain, shoulder pain and knee pain. April 4, 2012: A Route 94 bus left Baseline transit station outside Algonquin College shortly after 7 p.m. and struck a 32-year-old man crossing the street. The man was knocked onto the pavement, blood gushing from his head, and was taken to hospital. The bus driver was charged with failing to yield to a pedestrian.
May 29, 2012: A Route 98 bus was rear-ended by another bus at the Hurdman Transitway station at about 8 a.m.
Sept. 18, 2013: An OC Transpo driver and five passengers died after the Route 76 bus and a westbound VIA Rail train collided near the Fallowfield station in Barrhaven. The collision tore off the front of the northbound double-decker bus. The Via train, a locomotive and four passengers cars, came to a halt about 100 metres west of the collision. The locomotive and one car had derailed.
Feb. 9, 2016: An OC Transpo bus on Route 95 was southbound on the Transitway when it struck a pedestrian, causing serious injuries.