Mumbai BEST Bus Driver Pressed Accelerator Instead of Brake: Shiv Sena MLA on Kurla Crash

Driver Pressed Accelerator Instead of Brake: Shiv Sena MLA Dilip Lande said brake failure was the reason for the accident that occurred after a bus ran over pedestrians and vehicles at SG Barve Marg in Kurla West on Monday night, killing 4 and injuring 25.

“A bus that left Kurla Station had its brake failed, and the driver lost control of the bus. The driver got scared, and instead of pressing the brake, he pressed the accelerator and the speed of the bus increased,” Dilip Lande said.

The police have arrested the bus driver, 50-year-old Sanjay More, who claimed brake failure was the reason for the accident.

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But eyewitnesses claimed the bus driver was drunk and couldn’t control the vehicle. Inspector Bharat Jadhav from the state transport department said prima facie, the bus’s brakes are fine. He said a detailed analysis would be done later.

The bus, which departed from Kurla Station and was en route to Andheri, allegedly lost control over a 100-meter stretch on SG Barve Marg. It crashed into pedestrians, damaged 30-40 vehicles, and collided with the RCC column of the Solomon Building, breaking its compound wall, said the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC).

Deputy commissioner of police (Zone 5) Ganesh Gawde confirmed the incident, adding, “Four people have died, and 25 others are injured. The injured are being treated at Bhabha Hospital in Kurla and Sion Hospital. An inquiry is underway.”

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Further investigation is on, said the police.

As reported by PTI, after more than five hours of the accident, BEST said “as per the initial information, the driver lost control of the bus”.

The bus, after ploughing through pedestrians and vehicles in Kurla (West), entered into a residential society, Buddha Colony, and came to a halt.

The bus was a 12-metre long electric vehicle manufactured by Hyderabad-based Olectra Greentech and it had been taken by BEST on wet lease, an official earlier told PTI.

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