Starts in trouble but passes across (8)

I believe the answer is:

transits

'passes across' is the definition.
('transit' can be a synonym of 'pass across')

'starts in trouble' is the wordplay.
'trouble' indicates an anagram.
'starts'+'in'='startsin'
'startsin' is an anagram of 'TRANSITS'.

'but' is the link.

I've seen this clue in the Sydney Morning Herald.

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