LONDON, UK — Traffic in Central London ground to a halt Tuesday morning, after a 54-year-old British man was struck by a double-decker bus, with the victim refusing to be loaded into an ambulance until he had properly apologized and made things right with the vehicle’s front bumper.
According to witnesses, British pedestrian Simon Hargreaves was crossing the street in Central London when the bus failed to stop at a red light and plowed directly into him.
“Terribly sorry about that, ole chap. I do hope I haven’t damaged your paintwork,” Hargreaves said in a weak but polite voice to the bus as he lay bleeding on the pavement with multiple broken bones. “I do apologize for being a bit of a bother. I truly hope that you can remain on schedule after my rude interruption.”
The bus driver, who was not injured, later told police he appreciated the apology and then also offered up his own apology to the bus for driving it into the man walking across the street.
UK Transport officials later confirmed the bus route experienced a minor delay of approximately four minutes, prompting a written apology from the agency to the bus, the driver, the victim, and the affected passengers, all of whom in turn issued apologies back.
