A PARTIALLY-SIGHTED pensioner, who was thrown into a glass sheet and damaged her eye aboard a bus, has pleaded with the bus company to fit seatbelts.

Elizabeth Thomson, 84, of Meadway, Welwyn Garden City, spoke of her ordeal aboard the 724 bus which goes from Heathrow to Harlow, passing through Welwyn Garden City and Hatfield on the way.

She told the Welwyn Hatfield Times: “I had an accident on the Green Line bus.

“Someone cut the bus driver up and I was thrown forward into a glass sheet.

“I’ve damaged my right eye and I’ve got tingles in my arm.”

Mrs Thomson, who was blind in her right eye before the accident, said were it not for her strong dark glasses the damage to her face could have been even worse.

She tried unsuccessfully to claim against bus company Arriva on a ‘no win, no fee’ basis, after the incident, which took place on April 15, between Hertford and Ware.

Mrs Thomson, who says she still suffers from severe headaches, said if seatbelts were fitted in the affected seats towards the front of the bus, she would not have been injured.

A spokesman for bus firm Green Line refused to confirm whether the incident had taken place or not, but did say they had no plans to install seatbelts.

He added: “We were concerned to hear about this case from April and would ask to be informed of any such incident as soon as possible so we can investigate fully and take appropriate action.

“The safety of our passengers, staff and other roads users is of the highest importance to us and because of our focus on safe driving such incidents are thankfully rare.

“The modern buses on this route are less than five years old and meet the latest EU safety and emissions standards.”