ROAD safety campaigners have stepped up their campaign for a bus station in a busy town centre almost two months after the death of a pensioner.

A Facebook page called Darlington Needs a Bus Station and petition have been set up this weekend urging Darlington Borough Council to build a new bus station in the town.

It comes just weeks after a bus mounted the pavement near the Halifax Bank in the town claiming the life of Darlington pensioner Eileen Brennan.

Councillor Anne-Marie Curry who has launched the campaign said she fears without any action another accident could happen.

She said: “I think what happened has brought it to the front of people’s minds but it was something that I had been working on before Eileen died. There have been a lot of reports of very near misses.

“There are far too many buses travelling around the town. It just needs a loss of concentration and that accident could happen again.’’

The Liberal Democrat councillor said she believed it was something that people wanted to see and that is why she has launched the petition.

She said: “I have just started the Facebook page this weekend and people will be able to download the petition and sign it.

“The council says that people do not want a bus station but I think they do.”

Council leader Bill Dixon said that the council had done a survey in the town which found that people did not want a bus station.

He said: “There are three questions. Where would you put it? Who would Pay for it? How do you get bus operators to use it.

“The old depot was very well used as a garage but people didn’t think it was close enough to the town centre.We would have to acquire a sit and raise money to build it.’’