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| Council did not manage Cambridgeshire busway risk, judge told | Council did not manage Cambridgeshire busway risk, judge told |
| (about 1 hour later) | |
| Kathleen Pitts (left), Steve Moir (centre) and Jennifer Taylor (right) all died in collisions with buses | Kathleen Pitts (left), Steve Moir (centre) and Jennifer Taylor (right) all died in collisions with buses |
| A council prosecuted after accidents on a guided busway "mismanaged safety", a judge has been told. | A council prosecuted after accidents on a guided busway "mismanaged safety", a judge has been told. |
| Cambridgeshire County Council has been prosecuted by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) after three people died and a teenager was seriously hurt on the busway during a six-year period. | Cambridgeshire County Council has been prosecuted by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) after three people died and a teenager was seriously hurt on the busway during a six-year period. |
| The council has admitted breaching health and safety legislation. | The council has admitted breaching health and safety legislation. |
| A judge has been taking evidence at a sentencing hearing at Cambridge Crown Court. | |
| Jennifer Taylor, Steve Moir and Kathleen Pitts all died after collisions on the busway, serving Cambridge, Huntingdon and St Ives, between 2015 and 2021. | Jennifer Taylor, Steve Moir and Kathleen Pitts all died after collisions on the busway, serving Cambridge, Huntingdon and St Ives, between 2015 and 2021. |
| Barrister Pascal Bates, who is leading the HSE legal team, outlined evidence on Thursday as relatives of people who died watched from a public gallery. | Barrister Pascal Bates, who is leading the HSE legal team, outlined evidence on Thursday as relatives of people who died watched from a public gallery. |
| He said guided busways were rare. | He said guided busways were rare. |
| "This case is about the management of risk," Mr Bates told Judge Mark Bishop. | "This case is about the management of risk," Mr Bates told Judge Mark Bishop. |
| "The incidents in this case are related to incidents where that management did not work." | "The incidents in this case are related to incidents where that management did not work." |
| He said one charge related to crossing the busway and one charge to people being alongside. | He said one charge related to crossing the busway and one charge to people being alongside. |
| Mr Bates said the case concerned the "mismanagement of safety" and added: "Central to the case was unpreparedness by the council." | Mr Bates said the case concerned the "mismanagement of safety" and added: "Central to the case was unpreparedness by the council." |
| He told the hearing the council had repeatedly refused to ask itself "relevant questions". | He told the hearing the council had repeatedly refused to ask itself "relevant questions". |
| Mr Bates also said there had been "warnings" and told the judge: "It persisted, with inadequate justification, in not doing what it should have been doing all along." | Mr Bates also said there had been "warnings" and told the judge: "It persisted, with inadequate justification, in not doing what it should have been doing all along." |
| He told the hearing the "line speed", or maximum speed, for guided buses was 56mph (90km/h). | He told the hearing the "line speed", or maximum speed, for guided buses was 56mph (90km/h). |
| He said between 2011 and 2023 there had been three deaths and a number of "serious injuries" to "innocent" members of the public. | He said between 2011 and 2023 there had been three deaths and a number of "serious injuries" to "innocent" members of the public. |
| In 2011, a bus had made an emergency stop and a passenger had hit her head and fractured her skull. | In 2011, a bus had made an emergency stop and a passenger had hit her head and fractured her skull. |
| Mr Bates said the incident had not been reported to the HSE. | Mr Bates said the incident had not been reported to the HSE. |
| Guided Busways | Guided Busways |
| Guided busways are tracks which enable buses to travel at speed. | Guided busways are tracks which enable buses to travel at speed. |
| They have been built along former railway lines | They have been built along former railway lines |
| The Cambridgeshire busway is one of the best-known in Britain - one also runs between Luton and Dunstable | The Cambridgeshire busway is one of the best-known in Britain - one also runs between Luton and Dunstable |
| On Monday 5 March 2007, then Transport Secretary Douglas Alexander opened a manufacturing plant at Longstanton, near Cambridge, which aimed to produce the 6,000 concrete beams for the guided bus route between St Ives and Cambridge | On Monday 5 March 2007, then Transport Secretary Douglas Alexander opened a manufacturing plant at Longstanton, near Cambridge, which aimed to produce the 6,000 concrete beams for the guided bus route between St Ives and Cambridge |
| The Cambridgeshire busway required Government approval and the Cambridgeshire Guided Busway Order 2005 came into force on 11 January 2006 | The Cambridgeshire busway required Government approval and the Cambridgeshire Guided Busway Order 2005 came into force on 11 January 2006 |
| The hearing is due to end on Friday. | The hearing is due to end on Friday. |
| The judge was shown footage of two incidents. Both involved people trying to cross the busway. Mr Bates said one incident resulted in a woman's death and, in the second, a teenage boy was badly hurt. | The judge was shown footage of two incidents. Both involved people trying to cross the busway. Mr Bates said one incident resulted in a woman's death and, in the second, a teenage boy was badly hurt. |
| Mr Bates raised HSE criticisms relating to lighting, signs and foliage not being cut back - and said a risk assessment had not been done to the "requisite standard". | |
| He said buses running on the busway were "relatively silent" and "whisper along". | |
| A view of the guided busway | |
| Judge Bishop has indicated that he will announce decisions on sentencing at a later date. | Judge Bishop has indicated that he will announce decisions on sentencing at a later date. |
| A lawyer had said at an earlier hearing that a commercial organisation convicted of the same offences would expect a seven or eight-figure fine. | A lawyer had said at an earlier hearing that a commercial organisation convicted of the same offences would expect a seven or eight-figure fine. |
| The hearing continues on Friday. | |
| In September 2024, council chief executive Dr Stephen Moir apologised. | In September 2024, council chief executive Dr Stephen Moir apologised. |
| "We fully recognise and accept that during the historic operation of the guided busway, when these incidents occurred, that we fell far short of meeting these standards," he said in a statement released by the council. | "We fully recognise and accept that during the historic operation of the guided busway, when these incidents occurred, that we fell far short of meeting these standards," he said in a statement released by the council. |
| "For that we are truly sorry." | "For that we are truly sorry." |
| In October at an earlier court hearing, the council admitted two breaches of the 1974 Health and Safety at Work Act. | In October at an earlier court hearing, the council admitted two breaches of the 1974 Health and Safety at Work Act. |
| The breaches were: | The breaches were: |
| Failing to ensure members of the public were not "exposed to risks" when using "designated crossing points" | Failing to ensure members of the public were not "exposed to risks" when using "designated crossing points" |
| Failing to ensure members of the public were not "exposed to risks" when in the "vicinity of, or seeking to travel alongside" the busway | Failing to ensure members of the public were not "exposed to risks" when in the "vicinity of, or seeking to travel alongside" the busway |
| Barrister Ben Compton KC, who represented the council, had told the judge at an earlier hearing that the authority's "financial circumstances" would have to be considered before sentence was passed. | Barrister Ben Compton KC, who represented the council, had told the judge at an earlier hearing that the authority's "financial circumstances" would have to be considered before sentence was passed. |
| Follow Cambridgeshire news on BBC Sounds, Facebook, Instagram and X. | Follow Cambridgeshire news on BBC Sounds, Facebook, Instagram and X. |