HARARE – Two ZUPCO buses collided near Chinhoyi on the Harare-Chirundu highway on Monday morning killing four people, police said.
One of the buses was overtaking a haulage truck when it rammed into the other bus heading in the opposite direction, police spokesman Assistant Commissioner Paul Nyathi said.
The collision happened at around 7.45AM near the Dondo River bridge between Banket and Chinhoyi in Mashonaland West.
“The ZRP wishes to advise the public that after a full scene attendance by police officers on the ground and verification, the death toll is now confirmed to be four with 67 people being injured,” Nyathi said, correcting earlier information which put the death toll at seven.
He said both drivers were killed after being trapped in the wreckage.
Passengers Association of Zimbabwe (PAZ) president Tafadzwa Goliati said public transport companies should do more to curb excessive speeding which is the cause of most accidents.
Goliati said PAZ sent a petition to parliament in November 2020 requesting an amendment to statutory instrument 129 of 2015 which made it optional for public transport companies to have either a speed limiter or a speed monitor.
He added: “We submitted a petition to parliament in November 2020, requesting that speed limiters and speed monitors be both made mandatory for public transportation. Statutory Instrument 129 of 2015 makes it optional for public transportation to have either speed limiters or speed monitors, with the majority opting for the latter.
“We had advised parliament to address the issue of mandating both speed limiters and speed monitors with the urgency it deserves in order to save lives and prevent accidents. However, it is unfortunate that our case was not prioritised.”
