Update (January 19, 2026): Authorities have identified the man killed in this accident as Daniel Johnson III.
Houston, TX — December 12, 2025, a pedestrian was killed in a bus accident at about 4 a.m. in the 500 block of North Holmes Road.
Authorities said a westbound METRO bus hit a pedestrian during a road test near Hiram Clarke Road.
The pedestrian, whose name has not been made public yet, died after being transported to a nearby hospital, according to authorities.
No other injuries were reported.
Authorities have not released any additional information about the Harris County crash at this time.
Commentary by Attorney Michael Grossman
When someone is hit and killed by a city bus, especially one that was reportedly out for a “road test,” the first question on most people’s minds is simple: How could that happen? Was the pedestrian in the wrong place at the wrong time, or did someone behind the wheel make a serious error? Right now, we just don’t have enough information to say either way, and that’s a problem.
At the moment, all we know is that a METRO bus struck and fatally injured a pedestrian around 4 a.m. on Holmes Road. Officials have said the bus was on a road test, but that term raises more questions than it answers. Who was behind the wheel: a regular bus driver or a mechanic? Was the bus fully operational at the time, or were they specifically testing systems that might have been malfunctioning? And most importantly, how did a pedestrian end up in the path of a moving vehicle during this test?
It’s not clear whether the pedestrian was in the roadway, crossing the street or somewhere they shouldn’t have been. It’s also not clear whether the bus had proper lighting, whether the driver was maintaining a lookout or whether visibility was a factor at that early hour. These are critical questions that can’t be brushed aside or filled in with guesswork. They require hard evidence.
That means pulling data from any onboard cameras, reviewing the bus’s internal tracking systems and looking at dash cam footage if available. If the driver was using a cell phone or distracted in any way, that information would be in their phone records. Investigators also need to determine what route was being taken and whether any procedures were in place to prevent pedestrian encounters during a road test. Was there any kind of escort or safety protocol? Were METRO policies followed?
Having handled numerous commercial vehicle cases, including ones involving public transportation, I’ve seen firsthand how these early morning hours can be ripe for oversight and error. Sometimes the issue is poor planning. Other times, it comes down to simple but deadly mistakes, like not scanning ahead, relying too heavily on mirrors or assuming the area is clear when it’s not.
What bothers me here is the lack of transparency so far. Authorities have released very little information beyond the basic facts. That may be because they’re still investigating, but in my experience, the truth doesn’t reveal itself unless someone pushes to uncover it.
Key Takeaways:
- It’s unclear what safety procedures, if any, METRO followed during the bus’s road test.
- Investigators need to determine the pedestrian’s location and actions at the time of the crash, and whether the driver could have seen and avoided them.
- Evidence such as dash cam footage, cell phone records and METRO policies will be essential to finding out what went wrong.
- Without a thorough investigation, we can’t know if this was a tragic fluke or a preventable failure.
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