Driver on 'autopilot' before bus crashed into bridge

A bus driver was on "autopilot" before crashing into a railway bridge and injuring 15 people, a court heard, as he was given a suspended prison sentence.

Three people were seriously injured when the double-decker bus struck a low bridge on Barton Lane in Eccles in July 2023, tearing off its roof.

One victim suffered a fractured skull and several others were hurt after being ejected from the top deck.

Christopher Henry was sentenced to two years and eight months, suspended for two-and-a-half years, after admitting causing serious injury by dangerous driving.

Manchester Crown Court heard Henry ignored several low bridge warnings after taking a wrong turn while driving the 100 service between the Trafford Centre and Manchester city centre.

The court heard the experienced driver appeared to be driving on "autopilot" after earlier operating the single-decker 52 service, which uses Barton Lane, and may have believed he was still on that route.

Henry was also ordered to complete 300 hours of unpaid work and pay £150 in costs. He was banned from driving for two years and must pass an extended re-test before regaining his licence.

Witnesses previously described hearing a "massive bang" and seeing passengers thrown from their seats as the bus hit the bridge.

Alison Chew from Transport for Greater Manchester (TfGM) said: "Our thoughts are with everyone on the bus that day, particularly those who were severely injured because of Christopher Henry's dangerous driving.

"Alongside the police investigation, this collision has been thoroughly investigated by us and the operator.

"Ultimately, the bus should never have been driven down Barton Lane that day; it was off its scheduled route and alerts warning of the bridge were disregarded."

Chew said TfGM had looked at lessons that could be learned from the incident and explored what more could be done "to set the highest standards for bus operations".

New signage and warning measures were installed at the bridge within 48 hours of the collision, while low bridge locations across Greater Manchester were also assessed, TfGM said.

It added that a hearing by the Traffic Commissioner took no further action against the operator.

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