Another day, another bus accident. This time a double-decker tour bus full of Thai tourists, in what is reported as the worst road accident in Malaysia.
The question that came to my mind when I read the news was, should double-decker buses be allowed up the winding Camerons road anyway? And, were double-decker buses even designed for long distance travel? It seems to me that these buses whose origins date back to the 1950s were manufactured for in-city transport in London and primarily for short commutes.
The Star has a list of major bus accidents dating back to 2003 as follows:
Dec 17: Four prison officers killed after a Prisons Department bus plunged into a ravine along the hilly and winding Tambunan-Kota Kinabalu trunk road.
Oct 29: Seven passengers, aged between 13 and 28, killed after their bus skidded and overtured at KM38 Genting Sempah, while enroute to Kuala Lumpur. It was later revealed the driver of the bus had no valid driving licence.
Oct 10: Thirteen killed in bus crash along KM223 of the North-South Expressway (NSE), near the Simpang Ampat toll plaza.
Dec 25, 2009: Ten killed after a double-decker express bus skidded and hit a road divider at KM272.8 of the NSE, after the Ipoh Selatan toll plaza (northbound).
Dec 7, 2008: Ten dead after an express bus skided and overturned at KM146.5 of the NSE, near Pagoh, Johor.
Aug 13, 2007: One of the worst road crashes in Malaysian history claims 22 lives. The bus they victims were in crashed at KM229 of the NSE, near the Bukit Gantang rest area.
March 9, 2007: Six killed after an express bus plunged into a ravine at KM254, NSE, near the Sg Perak rest and recreation area.
July 30, 2006: Eleven pilgrims to the annual St Anne's Feast in Penang were killed when their chartered bus overturned at KM160.8 of the NSE, near the Jawi interchange at Nibong Tebal.
Nov 23, 2003: Fourteen killed when an express bus collides with another bus at KM63, Jalan Lipis-Merapoh near the Pahang-Kelantan border.
No comments:
Post a Comment