Bus drivers fear more bloodshed
Safety calls grow as NZ Bus director remains seriously ill. Lane Nichols, Hank Schouten, Blair Ensor and Sophie Speer report.
WELLINGTON bus drivers are in constant fear of hitting careless pedestrians, with one driver calling for jaywalkers to be fined to stop more bloodshed. NZ Bus director Tim Brown remained in a serious condition in Wellington Hospital’s intensive care unit last night after being run over by the front wheels of a bus in Willis St on Thursday afternoon.
The Wellington Airport director and Infratil executive suffered head injuries and a punctured lung.
At least 13 people have been hit by buses since the council’s new Manners St bus lane opened in November 2010.
Blood stains the site of the latest accident, where a message was scrawled on the kerb yesterday: ‘‘The bus lane width is sub minimum standards. It is an unlawful killer.’’
Grieving relatives of Venessa Green, 40, who died last year after being struck by a bus just metres from where Mr Brown was hit, have called for immediate safety measures to prevent more tragedies.
‘‘We don’t want any other family to go through this horrible journey of grief that never goes away," Ms Green’s mother, Marlene, said.
‘‘We have visited this site many times and it is nothing but a deathtrap. Please don’t let it happen to someone else’s loved one. A broken heart is not easy to deal with.’’
Wellington police are investigating whether Mr Brown’s vision was obscured when he stepped into the path of the bus. they’re hurt, I’ve got a couple of friends to contact first to settle me down before I contact the union or the company.’’
Fining jaywalkers was probably the only way to get people to change their habits, she said.
Wellington Tramways Union secretary Kevin O’Sullivan agreed near-misses were common. As for fining jaywalkers, ‘‘something has to happen’’.
‘‘It’s a problem that’s not going to go away in a hurry.’’
Deputy mayor Ian McKinnon said: ‘‘At the moment we don’t know how this accident arose. Until we know the facts, we’re really speculating.’’
He hoped the design of the new bus lanes was not responsible for the spate of accidents. Pedestrian "complacency" was the main reason Wellington had the country’s highest rate of accidents between pedestrians and vehicles, he said.
Wellington was compact with narrow streets and residents often felt they could cross anywhere. ‘‘The council’s introducing a lot of things that hopefully mean jaywalking isn’t quite so necessary.’’
Police do not believe Mr Brown was using a cellphone or other device at the time of the crash. Estimates put the bus’s speed at less than 20kmh.
Wellington district road policing manager Inspector Peter Baird said a study into pedestrian behaviour in the central city showed cellphones and iPods were not a major factor in people walking into oncoming traffic.
Too often people used a ‘‘group think’’ mentality when crossing the road. ‘‘They feel there’s a level of safety because others have crossed. Pedestrians have to take some responsibility for their own actions.’’
NZ Bus chief executive Zane Fulljames said the thoughts of his team were with Mr Brown and his family. Counselling had been offered to the driver and staff.