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Greater Wellington/Supplied
The Metlink On Demand shuttle bus is being trialled in Tawa.
A Metlink On Demand shuttle was almost hit by a train earlier in the year when it stopped over the train tracks in Tawa.
The train engineer had to use the emergency brakes to avoid hitting the shuttle.
The shuttle became “stranded” between the barrier arms at Linden Station and could not leave the train tracks because of queues of traffic, said Metlink general manager Samantha Gain.
One passenger was on board at the time. The incident is recorded as a serious near miss by Greater Wellington Regional Council in a report to its finance, risk and assurance committee.
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In response, the incident was reported to police and the bus operators were training drivers “to prevent instances like this”, Gain said.
Roadworks were causing traffic to back up near Linden Station at the time and the shuttle was part of a queue.
Bus operator Mana is working with train operator TransDev and Waka Kotahi NZ Transport Agency to investigate the incident, the council’s report said.
Other health and safety incidents in Greater Wellington this year include a near-miss between a helicopter and a glider in the Ruamahunga Valley.
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The glider pilot did not communicate and the helicopter pilot, who was on a mapping flight, had to take evasive action.
The mapping equipment hanging below the helicopter struck a tree because of the sudden reaction. The mapping scanner was damaged in the collision.
In another incident, a Greater Wellington worker broke their leg while doing flood protection work, after an excavator toppled a tree onto their leg.
Initial reports suggested the contractor using the excavator – who was not a Greater Wellington employee – was not trained for the task.
Metlink’s On Demand service, which operates similarly to Uber, is being trialled in Tawa.
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