Former premier accuses police of creating 'chaos' after CBD fatality
Former Queensland premier Campbell Newman has taken a swipe at police after a woman was killed by a bus in Brisbane’s CBD, saying their response created traffic chaos in the city.
Ann Street was shut for two hours while traffic was diverted onto other busy roads after the woman was killed while trying to cross the road about 7am on Tuesday.
“There must be a better way for the Qld Police to deal with a tragic pedestrian death than to shut down the entire northern side of Brisbane and create total and utter chaos extending more than 5km from the CBD,” Mr Newman tweeted.
Police had earlier urged people to avoid the crash scene at the intersection with Wharf Street.
There must be a better way for the Qld Police to deal with a tragic pedestrian death than to shut down the entire northern side of Brisbane and create total and utter chaos extending more than 5 km from the CBD.
— Campbell Newman (@CampbellNewman) May 21, 2018
A TransLink spokesman said there were 18 bus services cancelled with half-hour delays on the majority of city buses.
Buses travelling in both directions through the Brisbane CBD have returned to schedule but passengers should expect residual delays.
Traffic diversions were put in place while officers cleared the scene.
But Mr Newman’s comments didn’t receive a warm welcome online, with a series of Twitter users slamming the former premier.
“What an incredibly inconsiderate thing to say. Someone died. A family’s life has been changed forever today and all you can do is whinge about QLD police doing something better with the traffic,” one user wrote in response.
“In today’s news, @campbellnewman again confirms total lack of emotional intelligence,” another tweeted.
Investigations into the crash are ongoing, with police sourcing CCTV footage to determine what happened.
In a statement to Yahoo7 News, Queensland Police Service revealed they take its “responsibility for investigating fatal traffic crashes seriously”.
“It is standard procedure to close a road where a fatality has occurred while investigators from the
Forensic Crash Unit conduct thorough scene examinations without interference from traffic,” the statement read.
“The QPS is also conscious of ensuring scenes of fatalities are managed with dignity and respect
for the victims and their families.
“On this occasion, a traffic alert was issued to the public within minutes of the incident and local
diversions were put in place while the intersection was closed to traffic for two hours.”
With AAP.
