Commercial buses often carry dozens of passengers, few or none of whom are wearing safety belts. Combine that with the sheer size and force of a bus, and it is easy to see why bus accidents are so dangerous. Bus passengers and others on the road can easily have their lives forever changed by a bus accident. This is why the duty of commercial bus companies to operate safely is so important.
If you were hurt in a bus accident, it is important that you talk to a lawyer soon after the accident. Bus crashes often leave behind large and chaotic accident scenes with multiple injuries and other vehicles involved – the sooner your attorney is able to begin their own investigation on your behalf, the more likely it is that you will be able to gather all the evidence you need.
What is Bus Company Negligence?
While every driver on the road has a duty to use care to drive safely, transportation companies have a special set of responsibilities pertaining to safety. Bus companies operate large vehicles that huge numbers of people rely on for transportation every day, so the consequences if a bus company fails to take its safety duties seriously can be dire. A bus company may be negligent if it fails in any of these areas:
- Bus maintenance – A bus company is responsible for performing routine and as-needed maintenance on all its vehicles to make sure they are safe to drive. Conditions like faulty brakes, non-working turn signals, and bald tires on a bus can all contribute to deadly accidents.
- Driver training – Drivers require special training to safely operate a bus on public roads. If a company puts a bus driver on the road without giving him adequate training, the company could be negligent.
- Driver fatigue laws – Much like the trucking industry, bus companies are governed by federal regulations aimed at preventing drowsy driving accidents that limit the amount of time a driver can be on the road without taking a break to sleep. Negligent bus companies may sometimes allow drivers to work longer hours than regulations allow.
While bus companies cannot control every action of every driver or anticipate every mechanical problem, they do have a heightened duty to keep their passengers and others on the roads safe.
Contact a Green Bay Bus Accident Attorney
Herrling Clark Law Firm Ltd. has a team of attorneys with the knowledge and training to investigate a bus accident and recover compensation for injured victims. If you were hurt in a bus crash, you should not hesitate to contact a qualified Green Bay bus accident lawyer. The scene after a bus accident is often chaotic, with numerous injured people, damaged vehicles, police officers, and EMTs everywhere. Evidence of what happened can be lost rapidly in the aftermath and your attorney will want to start investigating quickly. Bus accidents involving government-owned buses are also subject to special rules and shortened deadlines.
Call 920-739-7366 for a free consultation.
Source:
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK384967/