SEPTA bus crashes into Center City building, injuring the driver

The crash near 15th and Walnut streets is the third involving a SEPTA bus in the last week

A SEPTA bus at 2nd and Market streets in Old City.
Thom Carroll/PhillyVoice

A SEPTA bus jumped a curb and crashed into a building in Center City on Tuesday night, leaving the bus driver with minor injuries, police said. There were no other people on the bus.

The crash happened just before 9 p.m. as the bus was traveling south on 15th Street and making a turn onto Walnut Street. 


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Police and SEPTA officials are investigating the cause of the crash. There were no other injuries reported, but the building was damaged. Crews were at the scene cleaning up late Tuesday night. Several bus routes were detoured due to the crash.

This was the third SEPTA crash involving a SEPTA bus within the last week. 

Last Friday, a Route 14 bus hit the back of a Route 1 bus on Roosevelt Boulevard in the Rhawnhurst neighborhood of Northeast Philadelphia. The collision resulted in the death of a 72-year-old passenger and injuries to 19 other people, including a 38-year-old bus driver who was critically wounded.

On Sunday night, a SEPTA bus crashed at Frankford and Girard avenues in Fishtown. Four people were taken to area hospitals.

And in Upper Darby on Monday, a collision between two SEPTA trolleys caused injuries to seven people.

SEPTA is investigating all of the crashes, Chief Safety Officer Ronald Keele told 6ABC. He said SEPTA is adding more training to improve safety.

"We look at all the procedures, we look at the equipment itself, we look at the operators' background," Keele said. "So we look at everything from A through Z."