The bus driver was sentenced to three years in prison for hitting a double-decker school bus onto a railway bridge, tearing off the roof, and injuring 41 young people, 3 of whom were seriously injured.
Martin Walker pleaded guilty to three allegations of injury caused by dangerous driving related to the incident, which occurred when he took 74 students between the ages of 11 and 16 to Winchester Hampshire Last September 10th.
Sentenced to 37 years old Winchester Crown Court Judge Angela Morris told him: “The entire roof of the bus was effectively cut off by your actions. As a result, the students on the upper deck suffered varying degrees of injury and trauma.
“It is clear that many young passengers were injured, traumatized and upset that morning.
“For the three most seriously injured students, it is obvious that due to your dangerous behavior, each of them has left permanent scars physically and emotionally.”
The prosecutor Nicholas Cotter told the court that Stagecoach Employee Walker was driving on this route for the first time, when he did not realize he had made the wrong turn.
Then he drove a 13-foot-11-inch bus under the 12-foot bridge on Wellhouse Lane at 10 miles per hour.
Mr. Kurt said: “This is an experienced person. He should know the size of his vehicle and his responsibilities for driving it.
“The defendant did not seem to notice the height restriction signs on the way to the bridge.
“Many students found that they had gone the wrong way and expressed their concerns. It seemed that some of them started yelling that it was not suitable for under the bridge.
“Sadly, these requests don’t seem to have been heard.”
Mr. Cot said Walker had time to evaluate the bridge because he had to wait for oncoming traffic to pass before he could move on.
He added: “This incident resulted in the removal of the entire roof of the bus. People in the vehicle behind saw the top of the bus falling on the floor in front of them.
“It’s so lucky that it didn’t cause more damage.”
He said that a female student described the bus as “passing through a tunnel.”
He added: “She recalled the children sitting in front of her, bowing their heads when the roof of the bus fell on her.
“She remembered screaming and yelling and people jumping off the side of the bus.”
Mr. Cot said that the three victims involved in the allegations-a 14-year-old boy and two 15- and 16-year-old girls-underwent surgery to repair deep facial cuts that may never heal. Nerve damage.
He added that they continued to feel anxious and one of the girls said that she had tried to commit suicide.
The prosecutor also listed the injuries of 15 other students, including cuts, bruises and whipping, and stated that a total of 41 children were injured.
Defending Neil Fitzgibbon said that Walker was diagnosed with learning difficulties and dyslexia when he was a child, but before the accident, he had been an “attentive and diligent driver.”
He said that the defendant’s supervisor at Stagecoach only gave him a “partially familiar” route, and because of his learning disabilities, he should receive more training.
Mr. Fitzgibbon said: “He believes he is on the right path, and everything he does has been assessed by stagecoach risk.”
He added: “Since the accident, he has been remorseful, and the thought of his actions causing such pain to others makes him deeply saddened.”
