The Ontario Ministry of Transportation will review OC Transpo’s bus safety after last Friday’s fatal crash at Westboro Station, said Ottawa police chief Charles Bordeleau in a Jan. 16 statement.
The Ottawa police has also requested assistance from the Transportation Safety Board of Canada (TSB) to help with the investigation.
On Jan. 11, OC Transpo bus 269 rammed into the bus shelter overhang at Westboro Station during the height of rush hour, killing three passengers and injuring 23 others.
Bruce Thomlinson, Judy Booth, and Anja Van Beek have been identified as the victims. All had worked as federal public servants, according to a press release from the Ottawa police. The cause of the crash is still under investigation.
Bordeleau said in his statement that the TBS will provide technical expertise in safety matters and will help with the OPS Reconstructionist Team investigation, but the service will remain the lead investigative body.
He added that the board will provide no analysis to the criminal portion of the investigation.
The driver of the double-decker bus, Aissatou Diallo, was briefly detained following the crash, but later released by Ottawa police.
According to the Ottawa Citizen, this was not the driver’s first collision, as she was involved in a previous collision in December 2018 at St-Laurent Station. However, Bordeleau stressed that the public should not read into the arrest of the driver.
The Transitway between Dominion and Tunney’s Pasture Stations was reopened two days following the accident. There are currently no plans, according to OC Transpo, to remove double-decker buses from route 269 or from any other route where they are currently used.
All of those listed as critically injured in the crash have since been upgraded to stable condition, according to the Ottawa Hospital, where the majority of those injured in the crash were admitted.
In his statement, Bordeleau said he acknowledges that many victims are still dealing with their injuries and “it’s important we support them as a community.”
Memorials have been set up, including one on the lower level of the Westboro Transitway platform, where the crash happened, and another located close by at the northwest corner of Scott and Athlone Streets.
A book of condolences for the three victims will be available for community members to sign at Ottawa City Hall until Jan. 20.
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Image by Temur Durrani
