Passenger died after Dartford bus braked suddenly, court hears

An 86-year-old woman died after she was thrown from her bus seat when the driver braked hard to avoid a turning van, a court has heard.

Beatrice Meager died in hospital from complications 15 days after the incident, near Dartford, Kent, in 2016.

Greg Emmerson, 26, from Gravesend, who was driving the Arriva bus, denies causing death by careless driving.

Maidstone Crown Court heard there was a crucial delay before Mr Emmerson braked after the van indicated it was turning.

Martin Yale, prosecuting, said Mrs Meager was travelling on the number 414 bus to her home in Sutton-at-Hone on 19 September 2016 when the driver braked after spotting a van in front of him.

He said Mrs Meager and another passenger were thrown from their seats.

She suffered fractured ribs, which led to breathing difficulties and ultimately an infection, and died in hospital on 4 October.

Witness Ann Myers said Mr Emmerson went to Mrs Meager's aid and said: "He didn't indicate. Is everybody OK?"

But Mr Yale said CCTV on the bus showed the van was indicating and that "five-to-seven" seconds elapsed before the bus brakes were applied.

The court heard that in his police statement Mr Emmerson, of Freeman Road, Gravesend, said he had looked in his rear mirror and then checked for waiting passengers at a bus stop.

When he looked back at the road he saw the van had "slammed its brakes on" so he braked "as hard as he could", the jury was told.

PC Mark Chapelhow told the court that checking the mirrors and checking for alighting passengers "could account for those five-to-seven seconds".

The trial continues.