Traffic officer hit by bus

A North West traffic officer was seriously injured when he was hit by a bus he was trying to pull over, the public safety department said on Sunday.

Spokesman Lesiba Moses said the traffic officer was trying to pull over a 30-seater Tata private bus for driving in the emergency on the R503 from Mahikeng towards Lichtenburg at 8am.

“It unexpectedly changed lanes, side-swiped a Toyota Tazz that was in the left lane and knocked him (the traffic officer) down,” he said.

It was thought the bus driver changed lanes because of faulty brakes and to avoid driving into the back of a bakkie which had been stopped up ahead by other traffic officers, Moses said.

The 43-year-old officer was taken to hospital. Police were investigating a case of reckless or negligent driving. - Sapa