Tampa Police Issue Citation for HART Bus Driver After Cruiser Flip

The Tampa Police Department has cited a HART bus driver for failing to obey a traffic control signal. The citation follows a crash that occurred on Saturday morning at the intersection of North 34th Street and East Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard. The collision caused a marked police cruiser to overturn and strike a second vehicle.

Investigators determined that the bus entered the intersection against a red light. The bus was stopped behind an SUV in the southbound straight lane. The SUV proceeded through the red light to make a right turn. The bus followed the SUV into the intersection while the light remained red. A police cruiser traveling east on Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard had the right-of-way at the time of the impact.

The bus struck the rear driver-side tire well of the police vehicle. The impact caused the cruiser to spin and flip over. The overturned police vehicle then collided with a Dodge Charger that was stopped in traffic. The Charger was pushed onto the east sidewalk and into a low brick border wall.

The police officer driving the cruiser was taken to a hospital for head injuries and back pain. The officer has since been released. Two passengers on the bus were medically evaluated and released. The driver of the Dodge Charger was treated at the scene for a minor leg injury. No serious injuries were reported in the incident.

Police have not released the name of the bus driver who received the citation. The department confirmed the driver was cited for failure to obey a traffic control signal. The crash occurred in the early morning hours on Saturday. The bus operated by HART was traveling southbound on North 34th Street at the time of the collision.

The investigation focused on the sequence of events at the signalized intersection. The SUV ahead of the bus turned right on red. The bus continued forward into the intersection. The police cruiser was approaching from the east with a green light. The resulting chain reaction involved three vehicles in total. The brick wall on the east sidewalk sustained damage from the final impact.