Buses caught speeding at crash death Cambridge guided busway site

Whippet's chief executive Jonathan Ziebart said the BBC's findings of speeding were "disappointing"

Buses are still speeding on a section of a guided busway where two people died in collisions, the BBC has found.

The limit of the southern section of Cambridgeshire's busway was lowered to 30 mph (48km/h) in 2022 after a review.

The BBC found some buses approaching 50mph (80km/h). The county council said it had raised the issue with operator Whippet as a result.

Whippet said it was "disappointing" and was rolling out a system to stop buses going over the limit.

Steve Moir and Kathleen Pitts were killed on the southern section of busway, between Cambridge railway station and Addenbrooke's Hospital

Steve Moir, 50, and Kathleen Pitts, 52, died in collisions with buses on the section between Cambridge railway station and Addenbrooke's Hospital in 2018 and 2021.

At the time, the speed limit was 56mph (90km/h) along the route.

The coroner ruled Mr Moir's death was accidental and police said bus speed was not a factor. An inquest into Ms Pitts' death is ongoing.

On the day the BBC visited the stretch in September, it found six out of 10 vehicles travelling between 15:00 and 17:00 GMT were over the 30mph (48km/h) limit. Some were approaching 50mph (80km/h).

Fewer buses were travelling outside these hours - out of 11, seven were also exceeding the speed limit. The data was gathered using a police-approved speed gun.

It is the second time in two years that the BBC has found buses speeding there.

A temporary fence installed on parts of the busway following the crashes is to become permanent

The county council is responsible for running the guided busway, which opened in 2011 and connects Cambridge and St Ives.

A spokesman said: "Since viewing the BBC's footage, we have raised the issue as a matter of urgency with Whippet... to seek an explanation for how these events occurred, what action has been taken in response, and how Whippet plans to ensure that these speeding events will not be repeated.

"Responsibility for ensuring compliance with speed limits on the busway sits with the operators."

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Whippet's chief executive, Jonathan Ziebart, said: "We do take regular checks and audits of vehicles, but now and then drivers are caught speeding and it's disappointing when this happens.

"There have been safety concerns in recent years over the integration between buses, pedestrians, and cyclists, and other road users alongside the busway... and so 30mph obviously limits and restricts any potential dangers along that corridor."

He added the company was "actively pushing out a system of intelligent speed awareness which will prevent buses, effectively, from going over the speed limit".

The other busway operator Stagecoach installed similar technology, which was rolled out from February.

Operator Stagecoach rolled out technology to prevent drivers speeding from February and Whippet now plans to do the same

The speed limit between Cambridge railway station and Addenbrooke's Hospital was reduced last year following a recommendation from a county council-commissioned independent safety report.

The council has approved the introduction of permanent protective fence along the route.

The Health and Safety Executive is prosecuting the council following the deaths of Mr Moir, Ms Pitts, Jennifer Taylor, who was struck at Fen Drayton in 2015, and the serious injury of a teenager.

The death of Mrs Taylor, 81, was ruled accidental by a coroner, who suggested lighting should be installed at the stop.

No court date has been set.