A wayward vehicle apparently caused a city bus to veer out of control and strike a decorative Route 66 column Friday at Central Avenue (aka Route 66) and Unser Boulevard on Albuquerque’s west side, reported the Albuquerque Journal.
“This bus was driving southbound on Unser,” said Officer Simon Drobik, spokesman for APD. “From what witnesses told us, a vehicle traveling westbound possibly ran a red light, causing the bus to swerve off course, hitting the structure here.”
The bus driver was transported to a hospital, where he was treated for minor injuries. The other driver was treated on the scene.
City officials also worried about the column’s structural integrity for a while.
Police closed Central east of Unser for several hours while they considered how to safely extricate the bus from the Route 66 structure.
City engineers initially were concerned that removing the bus could cause it to topple, Drobik said, but when the bus was towed, shortly after 4 p.m., the structure remained standing.
You can see from the newspaper’s photo that the column was damaged extensively.
Insurance companies will assess the liability in the accident.
UPDATE 1/8/2015: Video from the bus has been released. The bus driver is lucky to be alive. Buckle those seat belts, kids:
(Image of one of the Route 66 columns at Central and Unser in 2009 by sfgamchick via Flickr)