Letters | Hong Kong bus crash tragedy: is city failing to focus on Road Users’ Code?
If these three requirements had been followed correctly, perhaps this accident would have been avoided. The very simple act of turning the wheels to the left would reduce the chance of such an accident in the event of a mechanical failure or a failure to set the handbrake firmly.
Second, there are many road engineering measures that could be implemented to prevent such runaway accidents. An excellent measure would be to widen the pavement along both sides to restrict the road width to 3.5 metres, install a higher kerb and steel bollards to cure the epidemic of illegal parking and, finally, add a chicane near the end of the road with reinforced steel bollards strong enough to stop runaway vehicles.
This is not the first time that such an accident has occurred and, unless there is enhanced education on the Road Users’ Code and improved road engineering measures, it will not be the last. The Transport Department must do more.
N.R. Dunn, Kowloon
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