Transport for London (TfL) has been fined £2m after a 74-year-old woman was hit and killed by a bus while using a pedestrian crossing.
Grace Mecaley was walking home after shopping on Walthamstow High Street on 15 December 2023 when she was it by a double-decker bus. The retired nurse was about two-thirds of the way across an authorised pedestrian crossing when the bus turned towards her.
She suffered fatal injuries and was pronounced dead at the scene.
An investigation by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) found TfL failed to ensure pedestrians and vehicles could circulate safely at the bus station.
The crossing was suited on a bend used by buses entering the station and HSE found drivers couldn’t see the whole crossing clearly.
HSE inspector Laurence Goodacre said: ‘Grace was a vibrant member of her community and her loss will be deeply felt.
‘Grace was simply walking home after shopping when she was struck and killed while using an authorised pedestrian crossing.
‘TfL had a responsibility to keep pedestrians safe, but its failings meant Grace never made it home.’
During a hearing at Westminster Magistrates’ Court on Friday, TfL pleaded guilty to a charge of breaching Workplace Health, Safety, and Welfare Regulations 1992.
The public body has been fined £2m and ordered to pay £5,081 in costs.
Goodacre added: ‘Grace died just days before Christmas and her family will continue to feel that loss particularly deeply at what should be a happy time of year.
‘I hope [the] sentence provides them with some measure of comfort, knowing that those responsible for her death have been held to account.’
Image: Openverse
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