Man critical after being hit by bus in Dudley town centre
A pedestrian has been left critically injured after being hit by a bus in Dudley town centre.
The man, in his 50s, was taken to hospital after being injured in the crash on Castle Street at around 3.45pm today.
An air ambulance was sent to the town centre but the injured man was taken to the major trauma centre at Birmingham's Queen Elizabeth Hospital by land ambulance.
Paramedics were at the scene for around 90 minutes and witnesses said the National Express bus involved stayed on Castle Street until the medical teams left.
A worker in the nearby Greggs shop said there were two buses on the road at the time, one behind the other, and that paramedics were initially struggling to get through because of the buses and the road being one way.
Castle Street, Tower Street and New Street were all shut to vehicles in the aftermath of the crash and remained closed into the evening.
Officers advised drivers to avoid the area, although pedestrians were still able to walk around the town centre.
At 6.30pm a short police cordon was still in place from the Castle pub to the British Heart Foundation shop on the corner of the Castle Street and Fisher Street, just down from the bus station.
Various bus services were being diverted as a result.
A West Midlands Police spokesman said: "We’re currently at the scene of a serious collision on Castle St in Dudley.
"A man in his 50s has been taken to hospital in a serious condition after being hit by a bus and the road is closed while we investigate.
"Tower Street and New Street are also closed. Please avoid the area."
Jamie Arrowsmith, spokesman for West Midlands Ambulance Service, added: "We were called at 3.46pm to Castle Street to reports of a collision between a bus and a pedestrian.
"We sent one ambulance, two paramedic officers and the Midlands Air Ambulance critical care car and the Midlands Air Ambulance from Cosford.
"A man in his 50s was treated at the scene for serious injuries and taken on blue lights to Queen Elizabeth Hospital."
