The troubled tour bus industry has been hit by another tragedy as two women died when their bus plunged down an embankment in New York. The bus, that was taking visitors from Washington, DC, to Niagara Falls blew a tire, spun out of control and left the Interstate 390 about 55 miles southeast of Rochester, NY, according to Reuters.
Two women were killed and 20 were hospitalized after the crash on July 17, 2011.
“A preliminary investigation found one of the front tires blew, causing the driver to lose control, police said. The bus then flipped over and skidded down a wooded median dividing the highway’s northbound and southbound lanes,” Reuters reported.
The crash on July 16, 2011, was just the latest tragedy involving a tour bus, and our thoughts are with the victims. Just this year, on March 15, a World Wide Tours bus with 31 passengers aboard crashed while returning to New York’s Chinatown, when a tractor trailer or large truck clipped it and it hit a pole. That accident killed 15 people.
On May 31, 2011, our experienced Virginia personal injury attorneys reported on a tragedy closer to home when a tour bus crashed on the I-95 in Caroline County, VA, killing four and injuring 43. Manslaughter charges have been brought against the driver of that bus, who is accused of falling asleep at the wheel. The bus company Sky Express is under investigation. Wrongful death lawsuits could likely follow.
In June another tour bus crashed as it carried Asian tourists to New York (NY) when it slammed into the back of a tractor-trailer on I-80, the Pennsylvania Turnpike. The driver was killed and two dozen passengers were injured this time.
This spate of crashes has alarming implications for passenger safety. At least eight discount bus lines in Virginia Beach and Norfolk, VA, make runs on a daily basis to New York and Washington DC, but only two of these companies appear on a federal database that helps passengers check safety records.
The latest tragedy in New York state raises questions about the adequacy of maintenance on these tour buses and leads our Virginia mass transit lawyers to ask if discount bus companies are not also providing discount safety.
DM