A local woman was killed in a pile-up involving a bus and four private cars yesterday. The woman was on a zebra crossing in Rua de Francisco Xavier Pereira when the accident occurred.

The fatal traffic accident happened at around 9 a.m. Footage recorded on a nearby CCTV camera circulating online showed that a woman, who appeared to be in her sixties, was among a group of pedestrians crossing the road with a white car stopped at the zebra crossing.

Suddenly a New Era’s Route No. 8 bus accelerated from behind and crashed into the back of the white car pushing the car forward several metres. The white car hit and ran over the woman before hitting another car in front which ricocheted into another car, causing that car to hit the one in front of it. The domino effect caused a five vehicle pileup.

According to a statement by the Public Security Police (PSP) and another by the Fire Services Bureau (CB), after the police received a report about the crash, firefighters rushed to the scene. They rescued
the trapped woman in 10 minutes, but at that time paramedics were unable to find a heartbeat and she was not breathing and appeared to have a crushed skull. She was rushed to the public Conde de S. Januario Hospital Centre where she was pronounced dead upon arrival.

The statement by the Fire Services Bureau said the victim was in her sixties.

A 54-year-old man driving one of the four private cars suffered a neck injury. He was reported to be in stable condition in hospital last night. The police said that they continued investigating the cause of the fatal accident and urged any eyewitnesses to come forward.

According to a statement released by New Era, the bus driver in the crash is a 32-year-old local man, who had got his bus driving licence around nine months ago. The bus is six and a half years old and passed the vehicle inspection in May. It also had a regular maintenance last month, according to the statement which did not say whether the driver worked full- or part-time for the company.
After checking the vehicle, the company excluded mechanical error as the cause of accident.

The bus company said that it would investigate the crash, adding that if it was due to negligence, the company would “discipline” the driver.

Meanwhile, in response to the accident, the Transport Bureau (DSAT) said in a statement yesterday the bureau had requested the three public bus operators to suspend their part-time drivers, starting from today.

The statement did not say when the suspension will end.

According to the statement, the suspension will only cover the three public bus operators’ part-time drivers. Part-time drivers who drive buses for staff members of gaming operators are not included.

According to previous news reports, the three public bus companies have some of their buses used for gaming operators’ staff shuttle buses.

According to a report by local bus enthusiasts’ Facebook page “Macau Buses and Public Transport Enthusiasts”, Transmac and New Era each have about 30 part-time drivers, while TCM has only a few part-time drivers. Transmac and New Era told the page yesterday that the suspension would affect the frequencies of their bus services during rush hours.

According to the bureau’s website, the three public operators had a total of 1,307 bus drivers at the end of September. The website does not say whether the 1,307 bus drivers included part-time drivers.

Firemen and paramedics are attending to the victim after the five-vehicle pileup in Rua de Francisco Xavier Pereira yesterday morning.

Police officers and fire fighters are working yesterday at the scene of the city’s first fatal traffic accident this year. Photos Iong Tat Choi

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