UPDATE: Chesterfield County- Virginia State Police are still investigating Sunday night’s crash of a charter bus in North Chesterfield County. At this stage of the investigation, the trooper has determined that speed was a factor in the cause of the crash. State police has also been in contact with the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) concerning the crash.
Earlier: Virginia State Police are investigating an overturned bus crash that occurred around 7:15 p.m., on November 29th in North Chesterfield County. A charter bus was traveling south on the Powhite Parkway/Route 76 when it took the ramp to Chippenham Parkway/Route 150 south. As the bus came through the curve of the ramp, the driver lost control and the bus overturned onto its side. The bus, operated by Abbott Bus Lines of Roanoke, had 50 passengers and a driver on board at the time of the crash. Approximately 34 of the passengers and the driver were transported to six Metro-Richmond hospitals for treatment of minor injuries. One passenger is being treated for serious injuries. The passengers are students returning to the University of Virginia, Virginia Tech and Radford University. The bus picked the students up at Virginia Commonwealth University in Richmond and was initially headed to the University of Virginia in Charlottesville. The bus driver, 58-year-old Thomas Chidester of Salem, is charged with reckless driving.
