This article is from the source 'bbc' and was first published or seen on . It will not be checked again for changes.
You can find the current article at its original source at http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/rss/-/1/hi/england/beds/bucks/herts/6977389.stm
The article has changed 7 times. There is an RSS feed of changes available.
| Version 2 | Version 3 |
|---|---|
| Coach crash boss in safety claim | Coach crash boss in safety claim |
| (about 4 hours later) | |
| The owners of a coach which overturned on a slip road to services on the M1 are "obsessed" with safety, its chief executive has said. | |
| Richard Bowker of National Express said drivers have to meet "tough standards" and pass random drink-drive tests. | |
| Mr Bowker also said the firm was fully co-operating with police after the crash at Newport Pagnell, Bucks. | Mr Bowker also said the firm was fully co-operating with police after the crash at Newport Pagnell, Bucks. |
| The driver of the coach travelling from Birmingham to Stansted is to be quizzed on suspicion of drink-driving. | |
| Thirty people were injured, including six who were seriously hurt, in the crash on Monday afternoon, as the coach entered the services on the southbound carriageway of the motorway. | Thirty people were injured, including six who were seriously hurt, in the crash on Monday afternoon, as the coach entered the services on the southbound carriageway of the motorway. |
| Speaking on BBC Radio 4's Today programme, Mr Bowker said: "To be even considered to drive for National Express you have to pass very rigorous tests and the recruitment test, particularly around drugs and alcohol, is very tough. | Speaking on BBC Radio 4's Today programme, Mr Bowker said: "To be even considered to drive for National Express you have to pass very rigorous tests and the recruitment test, particularly around drugs and alcohol, is very tough. |
| Travelling by coach is far, far safer than travelling by car - it was last week, it will be this week and it will be in the future Richard Bowker Satellite image of crash site | Travelling by coach is far, far safer than travelling by car - it was last week, it will be this week and it will be in the future Richard Bowker Satellite image of crash site |
| "Once you are driving for National Express then the standards to which you have to perform are higher in terms of drink than the legal requirement. | "Once you are driving for National Express then the standards to which you have to perform are higher in terms of drink than the legal requirement. |
| "We randomly test and that means that it is extremely likely that you will be caught at some point." | "We randomly test and that means that it is extremely likely that you will be caught at some point." |
| The single-decker coach clipped a kerb, hit a lamppost and a tree and toppled over on to the driver's side in the accident. | The single-decker coach clipped a kerb, hit a lamppost and a tree and toppled over on to the driver's side in the accident. |
| Police were called by service station managers and four ambulances went to the scene. | Police were called by service station managers and four ambulances went to the scene. |
| Driver breath-tested | Driver breath-tested |
| The six with serious injuries were taken to hospitals in Milton Keynes, Northampton and Oxford. | The six with serious injuries were taken to hospitals in Milton Keynes, Northampton and Oxford. |
| Emergency services said 11 people, described as "walking wounded", suffered minor injuries and 17 were discharged at the scene. | Emergency services said 11 people, described as "walking wounded", suffered minor injuries and 17 were discharged at the scene. |
| In pictures: Coach crash | In pictures: Coach crash |
| The 34-year-old driver from West Bromwich, who had to be cut free from the wreckage, was breath-tested at the scene and is now under arrest in hospital on suspicion of drink driving. | |
| He is being treated for an injured arm and cracked ribs. | |
| Three of his passengers are still being treated at Northampton hospital. They are a woman, 45, from Shrewsbury, Shropshire; a man, 60, from Goussanoville in France and a man, 28, from Coventry. | |
| A woman, 57, from Victoria, Australia, and a man, 20, from Gdansk, Poland, are being treated at Milton Keynes General Hospital. | |
| A further two passengers - a woman, 39, from Worcester and a man, 61, from Kenilworth, Warwickshire, are being treated at the JRII in Oxford. | |
| Mr Bowker continued: "This is now a police investigation and obviously we need to learn the detail of this ourselves as quickly as possible. | |
| "It is so incredibly rare for us to have an incident like this... travelling by coach is far, far safer than travelling by car - it was last week, it will be this week and it will be in the future." | "It is so incredibly rare for us to have an incident like this... travelling by coach is far, far safer than travelling by car - it was last week, it will be this week and it will be in the future." |
| The coach had left Birmingham at 1400 BST. | The coach had left Birmingham at 1400 BST. |
| Return to story | Return to story |