THE Worcestershire Coroner is to write to transport chiefs to check whether safety measures for wheelchair-bound bus users are adequate.

Victor Round revealed his concerns as he dealt with an inquest on 93-year-old Phyllis Batchelor.

The widow had part of her leg amputated after an accident on a community transport bus.

Mr Round said the driver braked suddenly to avoid another driver, who had never been found. Police were investing the accident, he said.

Mrs Batchelor, who shot out of her wheelchair as the driver braked, had previous problems with her right ankle and walked with a zimmer frame.

She died in the Alexandra Hospital, Redditch, on Friday, January 5, after being admitted on November 17, 2000.

A post-mortem revealed the 93-year-old, of Crabbs Cross, Redditch, suffered a heart attack and had heart disease. But whether the heart disease was sufficient to cause her death or whether the amputation - which was a successful operation with no complications - had played a part was unclear.

Mr Round took up the family's request for further reports and adjourned her inquest at Stourbridge.

He said once it was concluded he would be asking the Department of Transport for information about the restraints used on buses for those in wheelchairs.

"They may say unless someone has died people think everything is OK, but I am concerned about wheelchair users of all ages and some with special needs who need to use transport," he said.

"In this case, the wheelchair remained in place and Mrs Batchelor came out of it during the accident."