BEST bus crushes man on WE highway

A 35-year-old unidentified man died on Thursday after a BEST bus knocked him down on the Western Express Highway in Goregaon (East) when he was trying to cross the road.

The driver sped away after the accident.

According to police, around 1pm, the man was crossing the road at Vit Bhatti signal on the highway, when a Malad-bound BEST bus ran him over, killing him on the spot. Some locals saw the accident, but did not note down the bus number.

“The locals informed the police control room; a team from the Vanrai police station rushed on the spot and admitted the victim to Bhagwati Hospital, where he was declared dead. The man died due to severe head injuries,” said police inspector D S Nalawade of the Vanrai police station.

“The man has not been identified and no has come forward to claim his body. Following the locals’ statement, we have registered a case against an unknown BEST bus driver, and have informed to the BEST department to verify the schedule of the bus and try to ascertain the identity of the absconding accused,” said Nalawade.

“If we look at 2011 statistics for fatal accidents in Mumbai, around 50 accidents have taken place on the Western Express Highway in the jurisdiction of the Vanrai and Dindoshi police station, and 50% of these people have died while crossing the road,” he added.