Fatal bus collision prompts coroner's warning

Senior Black Country Coroner Zafar Siddique wrote to the National Express West Midlands after he investigated the death Charlotte Tipper, who died after being hit by a bus on Bearwood Road in January 2018.

Mr Siddique sent a report under regulation 28 to the chief executive of National Express West Midlands following the conclusion of the inquest in September 2018, in which he said action should be taken by the trust to prevent future deaths.

In the report published online this week, Mr Siddique said there was a risk of future deaths after evidence emerged during the inquest that the bus driver had 'developed a practice of only focusing directly ahead with minimal eye contact with other drivers when emerging from junctions'.

He added that 'it appears this was done to so as not to give any other drivers an indication to pull out in front of his bus'.

Ms Tipper, aged 93, from Germany, was in a collision with the West Midlands Travel Volvo double decked bus on the A4030, Bearwood Road, at around 5pm on January 22, 2018. She later died in hospital.

Interactive map of the scene:

Her cause of death was listed as multiple injuries and a road traffic collision, and the coroner recorded a short form conclusion of road traffic collision.

The inquest had heard the bus was being driven in heavy traffic along Bearwood Road towards the A456 Hagley Road, and the bus had stopped near to the junction with Poplar Road.

Mrs Tipper was crossing the junction of Poplar Road, heading towards the carriageway of Bearwood Road.

The report said: "It appears that Mrs Tipper was most likely in the blind spot of the nearside “A” pillar of the bus, as the traffic and bus have started to move. The bus driver would only have been able to see her in his peripheral vision as they both moved in a southerly direction, unless he had specifically looked in the region of the nearside "A" pillar.

"Evidence from witnesses suggests that once the bus had begun moving forward, the driver’s focus was directed forwards. Mrs Tipper then collides with the bus and the nearside wheels of the bus have travelled over her legs causing severe crush injuries."

In the report, Mr Siddique said: "In my opinion action should be taken to prevent future deaths and I believe you have the power to take such action. You may wish to consider whether further training or guidance is needed given the technique deployed by the driver maintaining minimal eye contact.

"My concern is that this may result in a distraction when observations need to take place when emerging from a busy junction."

A spokesman for National Express West Midlands said: "We would like take this opportunity to again express our sincere and continued condolences to Mrs Tipper’s family for their terrible loss.

"As requested, National Express West Midlands wrote to the Black Country senior coroner. We provided him with full details of our robust and well established driver training programme and enclosed examples of the material we use.

"We also outlined to the coroner what actions we would be taking to assess the bus driver’s standards before he returned to this duties. We also laid out the further action we would be taking if that was found to be necessary.

"Since we responded to the coroner, we have had no further requests from his office.

"National Express gave West Midlands Police every assistance with their investigation into this tragedy and no charge was brought."