New York Injury Lawyer Blog

With the start of the school year comes the increased risk for New York City school bus accidents or bicycle and pedestrian accidents involving students.

Our New York City injury lawyers encourage parents to speak with their children about school bus safety as well as pedestrian and bicycle safety. Thankfully, school buses usually do a good job of transporting children to and from school in a safe manner. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration reports an average of just 19 school bus fatalities occur each year in the United States. However, thousands of students are injured or killed each year while traveling to and from school.

Bicycle and pedestrian accidents continue to be a primary concern. In fact, the NHTSA reports more than two-thirds of fatal school bus accidents involve pedestrians getting on or off the bus. And motorists are reminded that the law requires them to stop for a bus with red flashing lights and the stop sign displayed. Only when the lights are turned off and the sign is retracted, are you permitted to pass a school bus.

By remaining patient and doing your part, you can help reduce the risk of traffic accidents involving students as classes resume across New York.

The New York Department of Education reports that all districts are required to conduct three bus safety drills per school year -- one the first week of school, the second in November or December and the third after March 1.

The safety drills include:

-Instruction on location and use of emergency doors, fire extinguishers, first-aid equipment and window escape routes.

-Instructions on how to safely enter and exit the bus.

-Specific instructions for students to move at least 10 feet in front of the bus before crossing and to make eye contact with the driver.

-Training for hazards including ice, rain and snow, poor visibility and reduced hearing.

-The importance of orderly conduct and the rules and regulations of the Board of Education.

The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services provides tips on helping your child stay safe while traveling to and from school.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention also promotes the "Kids Walk to School" campaign which urges kids to stay safe but to consider walking to and from school as a healthy and environmentally friendly alternative.

Continue reading "Students at increased risk of school bus accidents, bicycle and pedestrian accidents in New York City as school year begins" »

The U.S. Department of Transportation has announced new rules to require motorcoaches to be equipped with seat belts.

"We're committed to making sure that motorcoach travelers reach their destinations safely," said Secretary Ray LaHood. "Seat belts save lives, and putting them in motorcoaches just makes sense."

New York bus accidents are a significant threat to both passengers and other motorists on the road. Safety advocates have argued for a mandatory seat belt law for years and claim the new proposals still fall short of what's necessary to help ensure the safety of bus passengers.

For starters, the rules will apply only to new buses and not to those already on the road. Mid-size buses and school buses will also be exempt from the new requirements.

Buses carry some 750 million passengers each year -- more than the airline industry. The government believes seat belts will reduce fatality rates in rollover accidents by 77 percent.

Earlier this year, the government announced the Motorcoach Safety Action Plan, which seeks to address other safety issues, including driver fatigue, inattention and poor maintenance. Researchers are also reviewing possible safety improvements to motorcoach structure, fire safety protection and emergency evacuation standards.

Safety advocates continue to voice concern about the lack of standard safety features in school buses. The New York Department of Transportation reported there were 2,317 New York school bus accidents in 2008 that claimed 9 lives and injured 1,791 people. More than half of the injured (903) were school bus passengers.

Ninety-one pedestrians and 20 bicyclists were also injured or killed in accidents with New York school buses.

Continue reading "Safety advocates: New rules not enough to reduce injury risks resulting from New York City bus accidents" »

At least 27 people -- mostly children -- were injured in a New York City school bus accident on Friday, according to Fox News.

Many of us rely upon school buses to transport our children safely. But poorly trained bus drivers, ill-maintained buses, and buses without seat belts or other safety devices pose a serious safety threat in the event of an accident. More than 140 people a year are killed in school bus accidents, according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.

The New York TImes reports that the accident occurred on East 63rd Street between First and Second Avenue. There were apparently no other vehicles involved in the accident, although there are conflicting reports that the bus stopped short to avoid a collision and may have been rear-ended.

NY1 reported that the bus had just crossed the Queensborough Bridge and was waived into the intersection at 63rd Street and Second Avenue by a crossing guard. Another car cut off the bus, causing the bus driver to slam on the brakes.

The bus, from P.S. 149 in East New York Brooklyn, was en route to a class trip to Lincoln Center.

Several children were removed on stretchers and at least 11 victims were taken to area hospitals for treatment. The Times reported that 7 of the students were classified as "yellow tags" meaning the possibility of broken bones, while 17 others suffered minor injuries.

Continue reading "New York City school bus accident injures dozens on the Upper West Side " »

The federal government passed tough new regulations this week, making it illegal nationwide for commercial bus and truck drivers to text message while driving.

While the New York Injury Lawyer blog reported in November when New York outlawed text messaging by all drivers, the federal ban is important because of the large numbers of out-of-state commercial drivers on state roads.

In 2008, more than 4,000 people were killed by accidents with large trucks in the United States, according to the National Highway Traffic and Safety Administration. In 2007, nearly 14,000 people were injured and 146 people were killed in New York trucking accidents, according to the state Department of Motor Vehicles.

Several recent high-profile New York bus accidents also serve as a reminder that school bus drivers and commercial tour buses are also required to obey commercial safety regulations meant to protect the public.

"We want the drivers of big rigs and buses and those who share the roads with them to be safe," said U.S. Department of Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood. "This is an important safety step, and we will be taking more to eliminate the threat of distracted driving."

Truck and bus drivers who violate the law face fines of up to $2,750.

Drivers take their eyes off the road for an average of 4.6 of every 6 seconds while texting, according to the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration. The federal government estimates distracted drivers are 20 times more likely to get into a traffic accidents than drivers who are not distracted.

Continue reading "New York trucking accidents in focus as government bans texting for commercial drivers nationwide" »

Authorities are investigating at least three recent New York bus accidents involving tour buses driving between New York and Canada.

Commercial bus drivers must be professionally licensed and trained to operate tour buses. Busing companies have a responsibility to make sure they are providing safe passage for customers, hiring and retaining safe drivers and ensuring their buses meet safety and routine maintenance standards.

The New York City bus accident attorneys and the mass transit accident lawyers at Queller, Fisher, Washor, Fuchs & Kool fight for the rights of clients who have been seriously injured or killed in bus accidents, subway accidents, train accidents and ferry boat accidents.

Not only do large commercial bus drivers and busing companies have a responsibility to ensure the safety of passengers, they must also do their part in avoiding traffic accidents with other passenger cars and smaller vehicles. Because of the size of large school buses, tour buses and other commerical buses, New York City car accidents involving a bus can lead to devastating injuries similar to those involving semis or New York City trucking accidents.

In the latest incident, one person was killed and two were severely injured on New Year's Day when their tour bus reportedly swerved to avoid a vehicle and flipped onto its side, according to The Canadian Press.

The tour bus, operated by the Big Apple Bus company, was carrying about 30 passengers at the time of the crash. The tour group had left New York City on Dec. 26 and had stopped in towns around the northeastern U.S., Ontario and Quebec. The bus was headed toward Boston at the time of the accident.

While that accident occurred in Quebec, a few miles from the U.S. border, the others happened in New York and all three involved New York tour bus companies.

In fact, both December New York bus accidents involved the same bus company -- Megabus.

On Dec. 21, a double-decker Megabus headed for Toronto had an accident near Buffalo New York, according to CBC News.

The Sunday morning accident on Interstate 90 was one of two serious bus accidents involving the company in December. Forty people were on the bus, which was traveling from New York City to Toronto, when it went off the road near a Buffalo suburb at about 7:15 a.m.

State troopers ticketed the bus driver for failing to maintain his lane, according to media reports.

On Dec. 10, another Megabus traveling between New York City and Toronto overturned on the New York Thruway, CBC News reported. Thirteen people were injured in that accident, which happened during snow and high winds.

Megabus.com offers discount trips on its double-decker buses between Toronto and cities in New York, including New York City, Buffalo, Rochester, and Syracuse.

Continue reading "Officials investigate third New York City bus accident in as many weeks " »