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Monday, July 4, 2011

Rethink of bus priority lane design necessary say family of Venessa Green, critics

Tranzwatching in Wellington, Te Ika a Maui, New Zealand

The extraordinary number of accidents on the bus priority lane system established in central Wellington is leading to calls for bedstead fencing or landscape redesign following the death of 40 year old jogger Venessa Green who was hit by a bus whilst crossing the road.

Ms Green was the first fatality but the seventh person to be hit by a bus in less than a year. Her grieving family want Wellington to look at installing barriers to protect pedestrians.

Other critics claim the boulevard quality of the layout and other factors have misled people crossing bus lanes.

The President of the Tramways Union, which represents bus drivers  told Radio New Zealand "I don't know what happened in this case, but generally, there is a terrible culture in Wellington of jay-walking, of people being on the road when they shouldn't.  The thing about all five of these accidents is buses weren't on the footpath - the pedestrians were on the road."

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