Auckland Transport (AT) said it was “upset” to learn a person had been “struck by a bus near Onehunga town centre”.
“Our thoughts are with them at this time. We’ll be working with police and the bus operator to understand what happened and to ensure the bus driver gets the support they need.”
The man was crossing Church St when one bus turned left from Upper Municipal Pl and headed towards Selwyn St, while the other bus turned right from Church St into Upper Municipal Pl.
He was standing on a newly installed island on the road next to a speed sign.
“The safest place for me to be was standing next to that sign. For some reason, they didn’t see me,” he said.
“I was standing there in a pink pair of Huffer shorts and a T-shirt so it wasn’t like I couldn’t be seen.
“The left-hand bus accelerated hard out and took off. The bus swinging right opened it up. I could see him swinging hard right. He had undercut that corner and collected me along the way,” the man said.
“The bus hit my right-hand side, spun me around and hit my legs.
“By that time, the bus had moved forward and the back wheel had grabbed my arm and run over my arm, tore my Rolex off, smashed the glass, and ripped my necklace into four pieces. That’s how close to my head it was.”
The 57-year-old suffered a dislocated shoulder, fractures in his shoulders, elbow and wrist, and his hand was crushed.
“I’ve got stitches in my thumb and massive abrasions. My spine has two fractures in my neck, one in my middle back, and god knows how many fractured ribs,” he said.
“My doctor couldn’t even put a number on the fractures.”
A Hato Hone St John spokesperson confirmed one patient in a moderate condition was transported to Auckland’s Greenlane Hospital.
The man said he had received no contact from AT apart from accepting his ACC claim.
His friend had now contacted AT about the incident on his behalf.
“What if that was a child leaving school? What if it was an elderly person? If it was somebody else, they may have not survived.”
He wants to see a pedestrian crossing reinstated on the road so there is somewhere safe for people to cross.
AT Public Transport service operations manager Duncan McGrory said a man was hit by a number 36 bus on the Manukau to Onehunga route.
“Late on Friday afternoon, our call centre team had a conversation with a friend of the man who had been hit by the bus,” he said.
“Following this conversation, the friend then sent AT a request on Saturday afternoon asking for CCTV footage and to arrange a meeting to discuss the incident.
“Although we might not be able to share the CCTV footage at this time while police are looking into the incident, we will absolutely make contact with the man’s friend and set up a time to talk to him.”
McGrory said Aucklanders deserved to get home safely whether they were riding a bus, driving a car or just crossing the road.
“It’s always gutting for me and the team to hear about incidents like this one and our thoughts go out to the man who was hit,” he said.
“The safety of Auckland’s transport network is a top priority for Auckland Transport and we work with our bus operators to make sure that any incidents like this are thoroughly reviewed and that any safety issues identified are addressed.
“We also support police with their investigations into any safety incidents that take place on the public transport network, including by providing them with bus CCTV footage to help with their inquiries.”
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