A bus sped “like the Grand Prix when the flag goes down” before knocking down and killing a 65-year-old woman at Walsall Bus Station, a court heard.

The Arriva bus, being driven by John Connolly, 63, of Darwin Close, Burntwood “surged forward” hitting Jean Crump, then went the wrong direction down a one-way road.

Connolly is accused of causing death by dangerous driving at the St Paul’s Street station on July 9, 2007.

Mrs Crump of Lime Avenue, Bentley, had multiple and fatal injuries after the single decker hit her. It also hit her friend Jennifer Fiddler, a passenger shelter, cars and a 51 Travel West Midlands bus to Birmingham.

Gary Nicholls, a passenger on the 360 bus told Wolverhampton Crown Court his first reaction was it was a “suicide mission” and then that the driver had suffered a heart attack.

Mr Nicholls, of Pelsall, said: “The only way I can explain it is like the Grand Prix when the flag goes down – the bus just surged forward. It just carried on down the bus station.

“I would estimate by the time it got to the end of the bus station it must have been travelling at about 30mph.”

Mrs Fiddler, 59 at the time, was seriously hurt. In evidence read in court, she said the bus appeared to indicate then start to pull away and then hit her.

Mr Roderick Henderson, prosecuting, claimed the bus was regularly serviced and maintained with no evidence of any major defects to the accelerator, braking or steering.

He believed the most sensible explanation was the driver kept the automatic bus in gear and had his foot on the brake, but it then came off causing it to move forward.

The prosecution believe he put his foot on the accelerator by mistake as the bus was travelling at “high speed” and in the panic that followed turned left rather than right out of the station.

The trial continues.