School Bus Crash: 2 Students Hurt, Driver Ticketed In Niles

NILES, IL – Three people, including two children, were transported to the hospital with minor injuries and a school bus driver has been issued a traffic citation following a four-car crash in Niles Monday morning, police said. Shortly before 9 a.m., officers responded to the scene at the intersection of Milwaukee Avenue and Main Street.

Police said the driver of one of the cars and a 6-year-old and an 8-year-old student on the bus were treated by paramedics at the scene and taken to Advocate General Hospital in Park Ridge.

According to a preliminary investigation, the school bus was headed south on Milwaukee Avenue and turning left. It had entered the left turn lane and began to turn left onto Main when it was hit by another vehicle headed north on Milwaukee Avenue, police said.

The force from the crash caused the school bus to strike three more vehicles stopped at a red light, according to Niles Police Cmdr. Robert Tornabene. (Get Patch real-time email alerts for the latest news for Niles, Morton Grove — or your community. And iPhone users: Check out Patch's new app.)

The bus driver, a 74-year-old Chicago man, was not injured, but was issued a ticket for failing to yield to traffic while turning left, according to police.

The bus is operated on behalf of School District 63 by Alltown Bus Service, police said and the district confirmed.

A district spokesperson said there were only three passengers on the bus, the two students and a school employee, and all three have been released from the hospital.

"Naturally, we are relieved and grateful that no serious injuries occurred," the statement from the district said. "At this time, we are working closely with Alltown and with the Niles Police Department to investigate the incident and assess next steps as appropriate."

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