Cyclist killed in Perth this afternoon (Corner Newcastle and Beaufort st)

[WestCoastEagle]

A cyclist has died this afternoon after being hit by a Transperth bus at a busy CBD intersection.

The crash happened just after 4pm at the corner of Beaufort and Newcastle streets, causing traffic chaos with the intersection set to be closed for hours.

Police and St John Ambulance paramedics quickly arrived, but the man riding the bike died at the scene.

https://thewest.com.au/news/wa/a-cyclis ... 881686600z

Looks like the poor bugger got left hooked by the bus.

[WestCoastEagle]

At least a dozen police officers and rangers monitored the scene, with Major Crash Squad detectives arriving to investigate the crash site, as the bus remained stopped in the intersection.

It’s unclear how the collision unfolded.

Traffic was diverted, with motorists trying to leave the city backing up on Beaufort Street. Dozens of pedestrians stopped, with some taking photos, but were told to move on by police.

A bike and backpack could be seen on the footpath as a tarpaulin was set up to restrict the view of onlookers.

A pharmacy assistant said a customer came in to tell them something had happened, but she didn’t hear anything at the time of the crash.

But she said the aftermath was scary to see.

“We turned and looked and saw a man crumbled under the bus,” she said.

“There was a big commotion with pedestrians and police.”

The crash prompted the early closure of the local IGA opposite the crash scene.

[g-boaf]

A cyclist has died this afternoon after being hit by a Transperth bus at a busy CBD intersection.

The crash happened just after 4pm at the corner of Beaufort and Newcastle streets, causing traffic chaos with the intersection set to be closed for hours.

Police and St John Ambulance paramedics quickly arrived, but the man riding the bike died at the scene.

https://thewest.com.au/news/wa/a-cyclis ... 881686600z

Looks like the poor bugger got left hooked by the bus.

That’s horrible. RIP to the rider and sincere condolences to his family and friends.

[AdelaidePeter]

Terrible Condolences to all who knew him.

The police report says the collision happened at the intersection, with both the bus and the cyclist travelling north on Beaufort Street. https://www.police.wa.gov.au/Media-Cent ... atal-Crash , and judging by the photo in the Channel 10 news report https://m.facebook.com/10NewsPer/videos ... 838940624/ , the bus was turning left into Newcastle St.

[Cycleops70]

Someone commenting on Twitter claims to have been there, & that the bus was indicating right to move out to the right lane (probably to take a wider turn) & then turned left.
The cyclist may have assumed (reasonably) that the bus was turning right.

[NASHIE]

Someone commenting on Twitter claims to have been there, & that the bus was indicating right to move out to the right lane (probably to take a wider turn) & then turned left.
The cyclist may have assumed (reasonably) that the bus was turning right.

Oh dear. It is a dedicated PM bus lane, and a tight LHT for buses. Slight down hill and rider could of been carrying some speed. Driver may not have known a cyclist was behind. Not nice for all involved.

[familyguy]

Very tragic. Reminded me of this, very similar: https://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/natio ... 650e72926d

*content warning for those concerned: contains CCTV from the shop on the corner and it's not hard to tell what happened.

[AdelaidePeter]

Very tragic. Reminded me of this, very similar: https://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/natio ... 650e72926d

*content warning for those concerned: contains CCTV from the shop on the corner and it's not hard to tell what happened.

That cyclist was coming off a footpath rather than being already on the road. But yes they were both deaths from left turning heavy vehicles, something which is far too common.

[Mububban]

FB comment from a claimed colleague of the bus driver of the Perth incident:

“….the bike went straight off the (foot) path and tried to go on the inside of the driver.”

So it could be very similar to the above link.

Regardless, sounds like that corner needs a redesign

[Scott_C]

FB comment from a claimed colleague of the bus driver of the Perth incident:

“….the bike went straight off the (foot) path and tried to go on the inside of the driver.”

So it could be very similar to the above link.

Regardless, sounds like that corner needs a redesign

I heard on the radio this morning that the bus driver in this incident has been charged with dangerous driving causing death.

There is an article on PerthNow

[ColinOldnCranky]

I have to commend those on this thread for resisting the tribalism that is rife on almost every other forum on the internet, instead choosing to wait on developments and more info.

Someone commenting on Twitter claims to have been there, & that the bus was indicating right to move out to the right lane (probably to take a wider turn) & then turned left.
The cyclist may have assumed (reasonably) that the bus was turning right.

On large long vehicles like buses it is easy to see how it can happen, so many vehicles are not really good for negotiating busy peak hour traffic. I have a good deal of respect for those who can do so safely.

Left-side passing of ANY moving vehicle is something that I rarely ever did when I was a bicyclist. I understand that the correct indication would still be a left flasher even when moving into the right lane to execute it. (I hope so as that is what I always did when towing my caravan.)

Someone commenting on Twitter claims to have been there, & that the bus was indicating right to move out to the right lane (probably to take a wider turn) & then turned left.
The cyclist may have assumed (reasonably) that the bus was turning right.

Along with more info, it'll be interesting to how it plays out in court.

Oh dear. It is a dedicated PM bus lane, and a tight LHT for buses. Slight down hill and rider could of been carrying some speed. Driver may not have known a cyclist was behind. Not nice for all involved.

I vaguely understand that bikes are allowed in dedicated bus lanes in WA. Is that right?

[Scott_C]

I vaguely understand that bikes are allowed in dedicated bus lanes in WA. Is that right?

You can only ride in bus lanes when the sign specifically indicates bikes are allowed. I understand that the lane where this incident occurred does allow cyclists.

[nachoman]

I believe the court date for the bus driver was today, am interested to hear if any circumstances of the accident are clearer.

[ColinOldnCranky]

Has anyone found what happened in court? Did it even get to court as set court dates seem to often pass without anything happening.

[WestCoastEagle]

Hi all,

I'm only bumping this as a woman was hit at the same intersection and badly injured today.

I missed the question from Colin regarding the outcome of the court case for the previous death - no, I don't know what happened as it hasn't been reported anywhere I can see although I know that court cases are taking a long time at the moment.

Be safe out there everyone.

https://thewest.com.au/news/perth/cycli ... -c-4753825

[ColinOldnCranky]

The driver was charged on 3 November 2020 with dangerous driving occasioning death and appeared in court on 4 December 2020.

I've searched for any reference to the outcome of the court appearance and have turned up nothing.

The circumstances as reported and the absence of any further reporting suggests to me that the matter may not have gone any further though I would expect at least something post court date.

Mine was only a simple Google search so if anyone here knows how to interrogate court records I'd be interested to hear otherwise.

[redsonic]

ABC News reports that the driver of the bus which turned in to and killed cyclist John Ferrington today received a 2 year suspended sentence and was disqualified from driving for 3 years:

https://www.abc.net.au/news/2022-02-17/ ... /100839316

[elantra]

ABC News reports that the driver of the bus which turned in to and killed cyclist John Ferrington today received a 2 year suspended sentence and was disqualified from driving for 3 years:

https://www.abc.net.au/news/2022-02-17/ ... /100839316

Thanks for this follow up information, the circumstances of this tragedy are well covered in this news article, which “paints picture” of a road intersection not ideal for large buses to do a left turn at (as was required by the bus route)

[zebee]

Looks like it is also about the right indicator left on, and the cyclist passing on the left.

That the bus had to swing wide is bad. i'm not sure the right indicator should have been on but damned if you do and damned if you don't.

I tend to be cautious around passing left of big vehicles but in traffic it's hard to stop and wait to see what they will do. No winners in this. Bus driver's lost his job and has killed someone, cyclist is dead.

What got me in the reporting was the "only a few seconds of inattention" and that is the problem with the entire motorised vehicle thing that people just don't want to talk about. Yeah there are aggressive drivers but there aren't many really. I bet the ones who have more crashes as a class are the ones who just got a bit careless, a bit distracted, a bit inattentive... and didn't crash that day. One day though, the stars line up and the crash happens.

Looking at street view I suspect one of the reasons the bus had to go wide was the cars in the cross street. Pull them back to the median to give the bus more turning room from the left lane.

[ColinOldnCranky]

I had not realised that the outcome had finally been reported on.

...but damned if you do and damned if you don't.

So true. Any vehicle over 7.5m is legally allowed (but not compelled) to show "Do not pass turning vehicle" signage. But, speaking as a past caravanner, it is so often unnoticed or simply does not register. And when negotiating a tight corner on a long vehicle with traffic, peds and curbs, it can be damned hard to watch everything.

Does anyone know if this tragedy gave rise to any changes in the intersection?