Jaywalkers should be fined to stop more bloodshed on Wellington streets, a fearful bus driver says.
At least 13 people have been hit by buses since the city council's new Manners Street bus lane opened in November 2010 and drivers say they are in constant fear of hitting careless pedestrians, Fairfax Media reports.
The latest victim, NZ Bus director Tim Brown, remains in a serious condition in Wellington Hospital's intensive care unit after being run over by the front wheels of a bus in Willis Street on Thursday.
The Wellington Airport director and Infratil executive suffered head injuries and a punctured lung.
There is a message scrawled on the kerb at the site of the accident: "The bus lane width is sub minimum standards. It is an unlawful killer."
Wellington police are investigating whether Mr Brown's vision was obscured when he stepped in the path of the bus.
The council has erected a temporary barrier at the site and says it plans to shorten the waiting time for pedestrians at several controlled crossings in an effort to reduce the casualty count.
Councillors will be briefed next month on a long-awaited pedestrian safety study.
A bus driver who regularly drives the route said she was constantly fearful, with near-misses happening every day.
"I haven't hit anyone yet, but I'm just waiting for it to happen."
People often played chicken with buses, but others just weren't concentrating or got distracted by MP3 players or mobile phones.
"I've even seen people push out babies. There was a time when it was really getting to me, but now I've decided if it happens, it happens."
Fining jaywalkers was probably the only way to get people to change their habits, she said.
Wellington Tramways Union secretary Kevin O'Sullivan agreed near-misses were common. As for fining jaywalkers, he says "something has to happen".
NZN