A father put into a coma at the same junction where a doctor died in a collision has claimed Transport for London (TfL) runs an “inherently unsafe” bus system.

Tom Kearney was left with a cracked skull and collapsed lungs after he was hit by the wing mirror of a 16-ton bendy bus in December 2009.

The father of two teenage boys, who turned 52 on Easter Sunday, was left in a coma and had to relearn how to eat and drink.

Following the collision, he has since campaigned to improve TfL’s bus safety record.

Tom Kearney in 2010, five weeks after his accident and three weeks after waking from his coma

He believes there will be more casualties like Dr Chesmal Siriwardhana, who died following a collision with a bus on Oxford Street, at the junction with Harewood Place, in the early hours of April 9 morning.

TfL said safety was a key priority.

Mr Kearney was 44 at the time of the incident, on December 18, 2009.

He was the CEO of a company and was walking back to his office in Cavendish Square following meetings in the West End.

His life changed at 7.56pm.

He said: “I was still on the kerb, but a mirror from a bendy bus hit the back of my head, pushing me forward into it. It was travelling at 20mph.

Dr Chesmal Siriwardhana, who died following a collision with a bus on Oxford Street on April 9

“The impact cracked my head open and burst both my lungs.

"It pushed me down on the ground and I was hit by the bus again, but fortunately it pushed me to one side.

"I didn’t go under.

“A 16-year-old saw what happened and rushed to my side.

"He saw me choking to death on my burst lungs, cleared my airways and put me in the recovery position.

"That single act saved my life.”

Since then he has become a leading figure on bus safety, and has given testimony to the London Assembly members on the matter in February this year.

A man has died after being hit by a bus at the junction of Oxford Street and Harewood Place in the early hours of Sunday, April 9, leading to a Metropolitan Police appeal for witnesses
Mr Kearney says the pedestrian junction at Oxford Street and Harewood Place is the most dangerous in the UK

His campaign to improve overall bus safety and safety on Oxford Street has also seen him interviewed on BBC and ITV news.

He says the junction which claimed the life of Dr Siriwardhana and nearly his own is the most dangerous pedestrian junction in the UK, and in 2016, an average of more than three people were in collision with buses each day.

He said: “When I started looking into the matter I was blown away by the number of people that are hit by buses in London. It’s quite astounding.”

He says TfL place an onus on punctuality and availability over safety, and quoted figures comparing bus statistics from 15 major European cities.

He said: “Between 2007-2014 TfL ranked first in terms of punctuality, and was second in profitability in terms of route kilometre.

“But it came 11th in terms of speed and collisions.

“The system is geared towards profitability and punctuality. It is inherently unsafe.”

“It’s a fundamentally flawed system, done at the cost of safety.”

Mr Kearney at the scene of his near-fatal accident, and where Dr Chesmal Siriwardhana was killed on April 9. He says it is UK's most dangerous junction

A TfL spokesman told getwestlondon: “There are almost 6.5 million bus journeys in London every day, and any accident is one too many.

“Safety is a key priority and we’re working hard to achieve the Mayor’s vision of no serious bus-related injuries.

“Deaths and serious injuries from buses and coaches on the capital’s roads have now fallen by 55% between 2006 and 2015.”

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