Chicago ,IL : 51-year-old Flossmoor woman Driver killed after fatal Crash in the loop on Tuesday evening ,June 2nd 2015

The CTA bus driver came to a stop at the red light on eastbound Lake Street, then inexplicably drove through it into Michigan Avenue traffic Tuesday evening, killing one woman and injuring seven others and himself, authorities said Wednesday.

As family and friends grieved for Aimee Coath, the 51-year-old Flossmoor woman killed in the crash, police and transit officials continued to investigate why the bus driver ran the light after stopping. As of late Wednesday, that question remained unanswered as uneasy pedestrians passed by the scene of the crash.

Donald Barnes, 48, a part-time driver who started at the CTA in September, was issued two traffic citations for the crash. He had been driving the empty accordion-style bus toward the first stop of his route before running the light, plowing into traffic, jumping the curb during a left turn onto Michigan Avenue and striking pedestrians on an open plaza, CTA spokesman Brian Steele said.

"We don't know the full circumstances yet," Steele said, adding that it was too early to talk about disciplinary action against the driver.

Barnes could not be reached for comment. The Chicago Police Department's major accidents unit is investigating the crash, a police spokeswoman said.

Upon hearing of Tuesday's fatal crash, Stephen Schlickman, former executive director of the Regional Transportation Authority, said his mind flashed back to a 1985 crash involving a CTA bus and a car carrying seven young people to a Bruce Springsteen concert at Soldier Field. All seven passengers in the car died.

This more recent crash is another example of how volatile the city can be for people trying to navigate downtown streets, Schlickman said.



Source :
CTA bus driver identified in fatal crash in the Loop