Washington D.C. — A man tried crossing a busy street in Washington D.C. near the Walter Washington Convention Center this past Wednesday and was badly injured when a Greyhound bus struck him. This happened on Wednesday afternoon, November 4, 2015 at about 1:15 p.m. in the afternoon.
It was at the intersection of K Street and 7th Street, which is just southeast of the conference center.
According to the news reports, a Greyhound shuttle bus for the nearby American Dental Association conference was headed west along K Street that afternoon, preparing to turn left onto 7th Street.
As it began turning, however, the bus struck a man who was trying to walk across 7th Street on foot. The man was dragged by the bus a short distance and trapped underneath the rear wheels, police said. It took rescue workers about 20 minutes to free the man and he was rushed to a hospital in very critical condition.
The bus driver and passengers were fine.
Police said they’re going to investigate some more, but didn’t mention who was at fault or whether charges would be filed.
Map of the Accident
View from the Road
Commentary:
If I’m not mistaken, foot traffic is very heavy in this area of D.C., so I’m wondering why this bus driver didn’t see the man trying to cross the road? I’m not suggesting that the man was in the right, because it sounds like he might not have been in a designated crosswalk at the time. However, that doesn’t exactly give the bus driver carte blanche to hit him, commercial drivers always have a duty to watch out for potential hazards in the roads.
Moreover, bus drivers are held to a higher standard because they transport passengers, not just cargo. I hope this is being thoroughly investigated, because all the bases need to be covered on this one. If this man was wrongfully hit by that bus, then Greyhound needs to step up and take responsibility for their driver.
— Grossman Law Offices