Georgia Truck Accident Lawyers Blog

Bus operators throughout the country have been under scrutiny recently after a rash of accidents that have injured and killed passengers. Since March 2011, there have been 22 deaths and another 159 injuries as a result of five curbside motorcoach bus accidents. Charter companies that require drivers to work extended hours or operate buses with mechanical malfunctions can lead to a high risk of bus accidents in Georgia and elsewhere in the country.

Our Atlanta bus accident attorneys want you to be aware that whether you're taking a quick bus trip across town or out for a day of holiday shopping, there are certain risks with the transportation you choose.

Following a tragic bus accident in Bronx, N.Y., last March that killed 15 people and injured several more, the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) decided to take a closer look at safety issues concerning low-cost curbside buses. What they discovered was that more expensive conventional buses are seven times less likely to be involved in a fatal crash compared to curbside bus transportation. This is one instance where saving a few bucks on bus fares may not be worth the risk you are taking in the long run.

The fast-growing economical bus transportation option has grown at a pace that can't be matched by federal authorities. The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) has been unable to keep up with safety inspections of every bus. That's understandable when you consider the fact that each inspector is responsible for inspecting about 1,000 vehicles.

The Wall Street Journal reports curbside buses, like those used in the Chinatown neighborhood of New York City, don't operate through bus terminals but rather pick up passengers curbside. This allows operators to lower fares for customers because they don't pay terminal fees like conventional bus operators do.

Safety violations, such as driver fatigue is a growing concern. From January 2005 to March 2011, the NTSB found that more than 16 curbside buses out of 100 were removed from service for driver fatigue. Conventional buses were taken out of service at a rate of 11.2 per 100 buses for the same reason. Overworked bus drivers for extended periods of time can become drowsy and put passengers at risk. Curbside buses also reported an unsafe driving violation rate of 22.4 incidents per 100 buses.

Curbside bus carriers should be under high scrutiny with statistics like these. It is up to FMCSA, NTSB and other federal officials to keep low-cost companies honest and above board with daily operations to ensure passenger safety today and in the future.

"The NTSB study has revealed important information about curbside motorcoach travel and, in the coming weeks, we'll need to continue working to improve the safety regulations that govern this growing industry," said Rep. Nydia M. Velázquez (D-NY).

Continue reading "Curbside Buses More of a Danger Than Conventional Buses in Georgia and Elsewhere " »

Highway funding legislation has been extended once again, with the U.S. Senate and House of Representatives pushing it back until March 2012. This legislation is referred to as Public Law 109-59. This is the eighth time that this bill has received an extension and Road Safe America isn't happy about it. This highway safety advocate group continuously pushes for safe roadways for motorists nationwide to help prevent fatal car accidents in Atlanta and elsewhere. The extension of this legislation is doing nothing more than putting drivers on U.S. roadways in danger, according to Road Safe America.

Most of the construction projects and maintenance work on our roadways relies heavily on federal tax money. The budget that organizes the money used for these projects is discussed, altered and renewed only every six years. The legislation that's in office right now expired nearly two years ago. There are a few ways that government can raise the money to keep this fund alive, one of the most popular options being to raise the tax on gas. But instead of figuring out new ways to make money to make our roads better our elected officials are throwing in the towel. With each and every extension, our roadways are getting worse and more dangerous.

Our Atlanta trucking accident attorneys understand how vital of a role roadway conditions plays in the safety of motorists. Our elected officials are supposed to ensure the safety of all roadways. If you feel that the condition of a road has contributed to your accident, you're urged to contact an attorney to help you take on the at-fault parties and to help you to gain the compensation you deserve.

In September, a bridge on Interstate 64 that is used to get from Ohio to Louisville and to cross over the Ohio River had to be shut down because of all of the stress fractures that road analysts found in the I-beams. This bridge could be closed for months, and roadway officials predict that many other bridges could be closed following even more inspections. Without the proper funding for projects like this one, these roadways could remain closed.

Road Safe America believes that if this type of financing was as predictable as other parts of government expenses, then these maintenance and rebuilding projects could have been avoided. The safe road advocate group is calling on Congress to do its job.

According to SmartMotorist.com, here are the common causes for roadway accidents:

-Equipment Failure

-Roadway Design

-Poor Roadway Maintenance

-Driver Behavior

More than 90 percent of traffic accidents are a combination of a driver's skill and a combination of one or more of the factors listed above.

Road Safe America and other safe-driving advocates hope that one day a highway funding bill will be able to introduce more safe-driving rules. In addition to roadway design, many commercial vehicles rely on on-board data recorders and speed regulating technology to help reduce the number of fatal accidents. The organization reiterates that it would rather have a complete bill passed than an incomplete bill rushed through legislation, but eight extensions is far too many.

Continue reading "Road Safe America Addresses Unsafe Roadways to Help Prevent Trucking Accidents in Atlanta, Nation" »

There's a system that will help you to determine which motorcoach company may be the safety for you to travel with. This system is a part of the Compliance, Safety, Accountability (CSA) Operational Model and it called the Safety Measurement System (SMS), according to the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration.

This system looks into the traveling safety performance of carriers around the county in an attempt to locate dangerous fleets that the Administration feels need an intervention. These interventions are used to help find the problems that a driver or a carrier may have in the ability to prevent commercial bus accidents in Georgia and elsewhere. The program doesn't stop there. It will continue to monitor companies to determine where problems are improving or getting worse. The new program is a replacement for the SafeStat system.

Our Atlanta trucking accident lawyers understand how important it is for the FMCSA to conduct an intervention with companies that may have a less than perfect record. With the governing of the FMCSA, motorcoach companies are more likely to provide safe modes of transportation. The FMCSA receives a bulk of the safety information from various roadside inspections. The Administration also obtains information regarding State-reported crashes and safety-based violations.

Performance is quantified through these Behavior Analysis and Safety Improvement Categories (BASICs):

-Hours-of-Service/Fatigued Driving: This violation includes drivers of commercial motor vehicles who have been cited for driving while fatigued, sick or in non-compliance with the HOS regulations. This citation also includes violations regarding HOS logbooks and other forms of fatigued driver management.

-Unsafe Driving: This violation occurs when a driver operates a commercial vehicle in a careless or dangerous manner. These violations include recklessness, speeding, inattention, improper lane change, etc.

-Controlled Substances/Alcohol. This violation is issued when a driver is operating a company vehicle while under the influence of illegal drugs, alcohol or while misusing over-the-counter or prescription medications.

-Driver Fitness: This violation is issued when a driver is unfit to operate a commercial vehicle. This can result because of medical qualifications, lack of experience of inadequate training. All drivers must be properly trained and licensed.

-Cargo-Related: A company can receive a violation under this category if it neglected to prevent loads from shifting, spilling or dropping.

-Vehicle Maintenance: This is a violation for failing to properly maintain commercial vehicles. This includes lights, brakes, etc.

-Crash Indicator: This violation will be received when a company experiences frequent accidents. This violation includes both the frequency and the severity of all recorded accidents.

If a company is cited with several of these violations, then the FMCSA will step in and conduct an intervention to ensure that the problems are resolved. All of these factors play a role in your safety and should not be taken lightly. All consumers are urged to check the stats and ratings of a company before taking a trip.

Continue reading "New System in Place to Prevent Injury in Georgia from Trucking and Commercial Bus Accidents" »

Officers around the country will be conducting thousands of unannounced safety inspections on motorcoach vehicles, companies and school buses for the kickoff of the national Motorcoach Safety Summit. This Summit is sponsored by the U.S. Department of Transportation's Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA). The kickoff celebration will take place in Washington D.C.

This event is used to raise awareness and educate drivers about simple safety steps that can avoid commercial bus accidents in Georgia and elsewhere. We have seen too many fatal accidents resulting from inadequate safety standards enforced by motorcoach companies. The Summit aims to raise the bar of safety to increase the safety of everyone on our roadways.

"This summit is about preventing needless tragedies and saving lives," said U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood.

Our Atlanta trucking accident attorneys would like to let the public know that this two-week inspection period will start on the 7th of October. During this time, officials will be on the lookout for motorcoach vehicles and corresponding companies that are not holdings its fleet to the highest of safety standards. As an additional part of the safety campaign, the FMCSA will be releasing a new smartphone application that will allow residents to search through all motorcoach companies to view safety record before choosing a company to travel with. This app will be released in November. The program also allows the public to submit any information regarding safety violations to the National Consumer Compliant Database .

During the Summit in D.C., the Motorcoach Safety Summit, a number of safety leaders will be meeting to talk about the Department of Transportation's approach to strengthen the safety standards for these motorcoach companies and vehicles. After the discussion, a panel of experts will discuss the importance and the responsibilities of daily safety precautions for the passengers of these vehicles as well as for the drivers and the vehicles.

The Motorcoach Safety Summit has been an ongoing effort to create stricter standards and ways to enforce the standards to help ensure motorcoach safety. Over the last five years, the FMCSA has doubled the number of inspections on buses and has conducted roughly 4,000 reviews on buses across the country.

In 2005, there were less than 13,000 inspections conducted by the FMCSA. In 2010, there were more than 25,700. From 2005 to 2010, the compliance results of these inspections jumped more than 120 percent.

Even with fines ranging from $2,000 to $25,000 for safety violations, motorcoach accidents continue to plague our roadways. Consumers are urged to research a potential company before agreeing to do business. If you experience an accident with one of these companies, it is critical for you to contact an experienced attorney as there may be multiple parties involved, including drivers, motorcoach companies, vehicle manufacturers and other motorists.

Continue reading "National Motorcoach Safety Summit in D.C. to Help Prevent Injury in Georgia and Elsewhere" »

The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration has ordered a Georgia busing company to cease operations because of violations "so widespread as to demonstrate a continuing and flagrant general disregard" for the safety of its passengers and the motoring public," the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration reported.

Our Atlanta bus accident attorneys have reported here before on the crackdown involving unsafe tour bus operators in the wake of a horrific accident that claimed 14 lives earlier this year in New York City.

"Illegal and unscrupulous bus companies are a serious threat to innocent travelers," said U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood. "The full force of the federal government will be brought to bear on those who willfully place bus passengers and others who share the road in needless peril."

The government is busy patting itself on the back this week, having released statistics showing an increase in enforcement efforts during the Obama Administration. Unfortunately, far too many unsafe busing operators continue to charge fares to unwitting passengers. At the height of travel season, the government reports the problems is particularly acute among low-fare carriers.

In this case, government inspects report that H & W Tours Inc., even lacked the proper insurance to carry passengers. Inspectors also allege the company failed to conduct pre-employment drug screening or the institute random drug and alcohol testing and that the company did not comply with hours-of-service requirements, records of duty requirements and driver qualification requirements.

"Individually and cumulatively, these violations and conditions of operation substantially increase the likelihood of serious injury or death to H & W Tour drivers, passengers and the motoring public," states the Imminent Hazard Out-of-Service order.

Earlier this month the U.S. Department of Transportation announced that federal inspectors have issues as many imminent hazard orders in the past two years as in the previous 10 years combined.

“From Day One, I have pledged to put public safety above all else, and we will continue to take action when we see carriers placing passengers at risk,” said U.S Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood. “We have seen the tragic consequences of unsafe practices – whether it’s ignoring fatigue regulations, providing inadequate driver training, or failing to conduct the proper maintenance of a bus or motorcoach. We continue using all of the tools at our disposal to get unsafe carriers off the road and hope that Congress will act on our proposal to provide us with the necessary authority to expand our safety oversight.”

Nationwide, there are an estimated 4,000 passenger bus companies. Under the current administration, inspections of motorcoaches have jumped almost 100 percent to 25,703.

“I’m proud of FMCSA’s efforts to crack down and take action on unsafe interstate bus and trucking companies,” said FMCSA Administrator Anne S. Ferro. “Our safety investigators, inspectors and state partners will continue demanding that motor carriers and their drivers adhere to safety requirements. While most of the industry operates safely, I also look forward to working with Congress to add new tools to prevent unsafe companies and drivers from operating.”

The safety issues being uncovered within the busing industry leave no doubt about the need to thoroughly research your choice in tour bus companies. These companies have an obligation to the safety of both passengers and employees. When they fail, a victim can and should be compensated for the injuries caused.

Continue reading "Georgia Bus Company Place Out-of-Service over Safety Violations; Atlanta Tour bus Accidents a Summer Danger" »

Last Tuesday, four women were killed when a commercial tour bus ran off I-95 and overturned in Caroline County, Virginia.

About 20 of the 53 people hurt in the crash remained hospitalized as of Friday for treatment of serious injuries at medical centers in Fredericksburg, Richmond and Hopewell, Virginia.

The Sky Express bus left Greensboro, North Carolina, on Monday at 10:30 p.m. and was en route to Chinatown in New York City. Sky Express is headquartered in Charlotte, North Carolina.

Investigators from the U.S. Department of Transportation blamed the accident on driver fatigue and prohibited Sky Express Inc. from operating interstate transportation services. The Virginia State Police Motor Carrier Safety Team ruled out any mechanical errors or malfunctions after inspecting the bus.

The driver of the bus, Kin Yiu Cheung, 37, of Flushing, New York, suffered minor injuries and was treated at the scene. Cheung has been charged with reckless driving and four counts of involuntary manslaughter.

DOT's Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration issued an unsatisfactory safety rating for Sky Express for violating multiple federal safety regulations for driver qualification requirements, drug and alcohol compliance, hours of service and vehicle maintenance.

Now, according to the U.S DOT, the company has tried to resume operations under a different name.

The North Carolina-based Sky Express Inc. had been placed out of service Tuesday by the transportation department's Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration for multiple federal safety violations, which prohibited it from operating interstate transportation services.

However, last Friday, the U.S. DOT issued a cease-and-desist order after it said it found the company trying to operate and sell tickets under two new names: 108 Tours and 108 Bus.

"We are relentlessly targeting unsafe and illegal bus companies," Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood said in a statement. "This action sends a strong message that the U.S. Department of Transportation will utilize every legal and enforcement tool available to shut down unsafe bus companies and protect passengers and motorists."

The transportation department also subpoenaed Friday the records of three websites that have sold tickets for the company as the DOT seeks to crack down on unsafe, reincarnated bus companies.

Bus accidents cause numerous deaths and injuries every year in the Georgia and the United States. This firm recently represented a young man seriously injured when the driver of the bus in which he was riding mistakenly exited I-75 in Atlanta and fell from a bridge. Several young men and the driver were killed and many injured.

Last week U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood today announced several new measures that the U.S. Department of Transportation's Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) is taking to help ensure that passengers traveling by bus are as safe as possible.

The U.S. DOT will now require more rigorous commercial driver's license testing standards, seek new rules to strengthen passenger carrier and driver compliance with federal safety regulations, and empower consumers to review safety records of bus companies before booking.

Secretary also announced that FMCSA will be teaming up with state law enforcement to conduct unannounced motorcoach inspections at popular travel destinations throughout the spring and summer peak travel season.

The U.S. Department of Transportation's Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) issued a new final rule requiring anyone applying for a commercial driver’s license (CDL) to first obtain a commercial driver’s learner’s permit. The rule also requires all state licensing agencies to use a CDL testing system that meets the American Association of Motor Vehicle Administrators CDL knowledge and skill standards, and prohibits the use of foreign language interpreters to reduce the potential for testing fraud.

Prior to this new rule, CDL applicants were not required to first obtain a learner's permit and CDL testing systems were not uniform nationwide.

Additionally, the U.S. Department of Transportation issued several new policy proposals designed to raise the bar for passenger carrier safety, including a provision that would give the U.S. DOT greater authority to pursue enforcement action against unsafe "reincarnated" passenger carriers by establishing a federal standard to help determine whether a new carrier is simply a reincarnation of an old, unsafe carrier.

The Department is also proposing to require new motorcoach companies to undergo a full safety audit before receiving U.S. DOT operating authority, revise current law to ensure a driver's CDL can be suspended or revoked for drug- and alcohol-related offenses committed in non-commercial vehicles, and raise the penalty from $2,000 a day to $25,000 for passenger carriers that attempt to operate without USDOT authority.

The USDOT also unveiled a safety checklist that will help consumers review a bus company's safety record, safety rating and USDOT operating authority before buying a ticket or hiring a bus company for group travel.

The checklist is now available online at FMCSA's Passenger Bus Safety Web site. FMCSA is also encouraging consumers to report any unsafe bus company, vehicle or driver to the agency through a toll free hotline 1-888-DOT-SAFT (1-888-368-7238).

In addition, FMCSA and its state and local enforcement partners are supporting improved passenger bus safety with a growing number of unannounced bus safety inspections across the country. Starting this week and lasting throughout the summer travel season, the enforcement campaign will target popular destinations such as amusement parks, national parks, casinos, and sports event venues.

Over the past five years, FMCSA has doubled the number of unannounced bus safety inspections and comprehensive safety reviews of the nation's estimated 4,000 passenger bus companies. Roadside safety inspections of motorcoaches jumped from 12,991 in 2005 to 25,703 in 2010, while compliance reviews rose from 457 in 2005 to 1,042 in 2010.

The Administration has taken a number of additional actions over the past several years to improve passenger safety:

• Last December, USDOT launched a new safety measurement system titled Compliance, Safety, Accountability that provides detailed safety data to identify bus companies for safety interventions.

• The Obama Administration is spearheading major improvements to passenger carrier safety through a wide-ranging Motorcoach Safety Action Plan. USDOT has proposed rules that will require buses to have seat belts and electronic on-board recorders to replace easily falsified paper records of driver hours.

• Last year, USDOT adopted a rule to combat distracted driving by banning commercial drivers from texting behind the wheel and proposed a new standard to prohibit hand-held mobile phone use.