Driver hospitalized, but no injuries to passengers in Newton bus crash

By Brian R. Ballou, Globe Staff

A Peter Pan bus driver with a stellar record behind the wheel apparently blacked out this morning while driving 31 riders from Springfield to Boston, hitting a tree near an exit in Newton, a company executive said.

None of the passengers were injured; the driver was taken to a hospital in Boston, said Robert Schwarz, executive vice president of Peter Pan Bus Lines.

"He blacked out and hit his head on the steering wheel, and when he woke up a moment later, he asked everyone on the bus if they were okay,'" Schwarz said.

Schwarz did not disclose the name or age of the driver, but did say he had driven for 12 years, or over a million miles, without an accident. The driver is also an instructor who trains new drivers.

The bus left Springfield at 8:15 a.m. At 10 a.m., the driver took Exit 14 off the Mass Turnpike in Newton. The bus was headed for a brief stop at the Riverside MBTA Station in Newton, but seconds after taking the exit, the driver blacked out and the bus ran into a tree.

The passengers were picked up by another Peter Pan Bus, which took them the rest of the way to Boston, Schwarz said.

A Newton Police spokesman said no charges will be filed against the driver.

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