Two people knocked down by Princes Street buses in a week

Published on Thursday 29 January 2009 09:10

BUS bosses have admitted that drivers are finding Princes Street "challenging" after it emerged that two people have been knocked down in less than a week.

One man is believed to be in hospital suffering from serious head injuries after an accident involving a bus on Friday, while a 45-year-old man was hit by a bus on Tuesday but escaped with only minor injuries.

Police have cleared Lothian Buses of blame for both incidents, but transport chiefs said road management measures brought in for the tram works had placed added pressure on drivers.

The safety of the pedestrian crossing at The Mound is also believed to be under investigation following Tuesday's incident.

The first of the two incidents happened at 7.30pm on Friday when a 24-year-old man was hit by a bus and was rushed to Edinburgh Royal Infirmary.

A police spokeswoman said: "Princes Street was closed westbound from around 8pm, and barriers were also in place at the junction of South St David Street and Waverley Bridge.

"The road was reopened at around 11.45pm."

It is believed the man suffered head injuries after being hit by an Airlink bus, but police said his condition had "stabilised" by Saturday. Police received no further update on his condition after this.

In the second incident, a man was hit by a bus on Princes Street shortly before 2pm on Tuesday.

The 45-year-old was taken to Edinburgh Royal Infirmary but suffered no serious injuries.

The police spokeswoman added: "The male was trying to cross the road when he was struck by a bus travelling eastbound along Princes Street.

"The road was closed westbound from the Scott Monument, and eastbound from The Mound from about 1.45pm, so the incident would have happened somewhere in between. The man was not seriously injured. The accident caused quite a bit of congestion until the road was reopened at around 3pm."

On-board camera footage from both buses is being studied by police and bus company bosses.

A spokesman for Lothian Buses said: "Both of these buses contained sophisticated camera equipment. The information from the cameras has been extracted and we are sharing that with police to assist in their inquiries.

"We are also carrying out our own internal investigation into the incidents. Some (traffic management] changes have taken place on Princes Street and there will be more to come. It's made things challenging for bus drivers."

One driver, who did not want to be named, said the growing number of roadworks in the city had made driving in the Capital "increasingly difficult".

Buses on Princes Street have observed a voluntary 20mph speed limit since American tourist Luella Duncan, 54, died when she was knocked down by a double-decker bus in 1996.

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