Bus smashes into tree at Modbury Interchange, O-Bahn area closed
Traffic delays continue to impact O-Bahn routes after a bus crashed into a tree near Tea Tree Plaza – with the driver rushed to hospital in a serious condition.
SA News
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A driver has been seriously injured after their bus crashed into a tree, near the Tea Tree Plaza Interchange Park’n’Ride, forcing a closure while emergency services attend to the scene.
Police and emergency services, including Metropolitan Fire Services, rushed to Modbury Interchange, after reports a bus had collided into a tree, just before 9.30am on Friday.
A spokesman for SA Ambulance said the driver – a 27-year-old man – was rushed to the Royal Adelaide Hospital by Medstar with “significant and serious” injuries.
MFS commander Shane Finney said he had never attended such a visually shocking crash prior to today.
“The driver was stabilised first by SAAS,” Mr Finney said.
“Then we used our specialist cutting tool to remove the bus from around the driver … our crews got in there and removed the driver in about 20 minutes.”
The impact of the collision left the front of the bus split in half, a tree trunk inside the vehicle, the front seats crumpled, and windshield fragments sprayed around the crash site.
Police confirmed no passengers were on board the bus during the incident.
O-Bahn user Andy Wells was a passenger on another bus, which was travelling to Tea Tree Plaza Interchange before its closure. They were dropped off at one stop prior and instructed to walk the rest of the way.
Mr Wells said he was perplexed by how the incident occurred.
He said it was fortunate no one else was on the bus.
“The drivers cram so many people on and they say stand behind the line,” he said.
“But they let so many people on to get them into town, out of town.
“(A passenger) could have been flown through the windshield and received much more damage or there could have been fatalities.”
Mr Wells added he “feels” for the driver.
Adelaide Metro said 20 bus routes have been affected, with allocated staff at Tea Tree Plaza interchange helping and redirecting passengers to alternative stops.
O-Bahn routes between Tea Tree Plaza Interchange and Paradise Interchange have been closed, and all the stops at Tea Tree Plaza Interchange.
Motorists are being advised to check the Adelaide Metro website for affected routes and updates, while commuters are being urged to allow for extra travel time.
A Department of Infrastructure and Transport spokesman said the bus and debris had been cleared around 4pm.
Passengers using the O-Bahn between Paradise Interchange and Tea Tree Plaza should expect some disruptions.
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Originally published as Bus smashes into tree at Modbury Interchange, O-Bahn area closed
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