1 hospitalized after van strikes Port Authority bus in Pittsburgh’s Strip District

A minivan crashed into a Port Authority of Allegheny County bus Friday night in Pittsburgh’s Strip District, sending the van’s driver to the hospital in serious condition, officials said.

The crash happened shortly before 6:30 p.m. in the 1600 block of Liberty Avenue, a couple blocks from the 16th Street Bridge over the Allegheny River.

“Initial reports were that the bus was stopped at the red light at Liberty and 16th (Street) and rear-ended by a vehicle,” Port Authority spokesman Adam Brandolph said. He couldn’t say how fast the van was going when it struck the bus, but said its speed was believed to be greater than 5 mph.

Port Authority and Pittsburgh police, firefighters and medics responded to assist, Pittsburgh Public Safety spokesman Maurice Matthews said.

The bus driver was not injured. There was one passenger on the bus.

“The passenger complained of a minor injury and was transported to be evaluated,” Matthews said.

The driver of the van was badly injured and had to be freed by first responders, Matthews said.

The injured driver was taken to UPMC Mercy hospital and reported to be “in serious but stable condition,” according to Brandolph. The person was not identified.

It’s unclear what caused the van’s driver to hit the stopped bus.

“Right now, it’s still under investigation,” Brandolph said.

“The bus operator is not going to be drug and alcohol tested because they were found to not be a contributing factor in the crash.”

Liberty Avenue was closed for a short time in both directions as officials investigated the site of the crash.

Detectives with the Port Authority police are leading the investigation.