San Francisco Personal Injury Lawyer - Mass Transit (Airline, Cruise Ship, Train, Bus)

Bus crash injures 19 people in Los Angeles

Claude Wyle — Wed, 11 Nov 2009 18:11:56 GMT

They say that misery loves company, and if so, this might be one of the few times that San Francisco loves LA. A Los Angeles county bus collided with another vehicle last week in the Silver Lake neighborhood of Los Angeles, injuring 19 people, one critically.

San Francisco has had more than its share of Muni accidents, the latest of which involved an inbound L-Taraval smashing into an outbound K-Ingleside at the West Portal Station this July. In that accident, 4 people suffered severe injuries and 43 suffered moderate to severe injuries.

Fortunately, the Los Angeles accident was slightly less serious. Apparently the accident involving a Metropolitan Transportation Authority bus happened around 6 p.m. Friday. Ten people were taken to the hospital. One person was reported to be in critical condition. The other injuries were described as minor to moderate.

As personal injury attorneys, we are always distressed by accidents involving common carriers such as Muni. One of our main concerns is that the trauma may cause you to forgo your rights. When an injury is caused by a Muni bus, streetcar or cable car, a claim must be brought against the City within six months of the date of the accident. Know your rights!

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Claude Wyle

New Safety Guidelines Implemented After Muni Accident

Claude Wyle — Fri, 24 Jul 2009 07:15:00 GMT

Many people have been injured or killed in public transit accidents over the last four months. The most current incident is last week’s crash here in San Francisco, in which nearly fifty people were injured. In the wake of this accident, Muni operators have implemented new measures designed to protect the public. Drivers will no longer be able to switch trains from automatic to manual control without permission of a dispatcher. The San Francisco Municipal Transportation Authority said that it had seen no “impact on service,” since implementation of the new regulations. Well, it would be odd if they had, as it has been in effect for less than three days.

Strangely, these new measures are oddly reminiscent of the old safety measures. These are the same measures that the management of Muni has already declined to enforce. Some, notably Irwin Lum, head of the union which represents drivers of Muni light rail trains, have suggested that the operators of the Muni disregarded these rules as a matter of course. Lum maintains that these new rules are being circulated largely to make it appear that Henry Gray, the driver of the L train involved in Saturday’s accident, had done something wrong.

The management of the Muni system are operating a common carrier. This means that they are required to take the highest level of care to ensure the safety of the riding public. This is as it should be. If in fact management has, for “the past three or four years” been allowing drivers to decide when to change from automatic to manual control, then they, and not the driver in this incident, are responsible for the injured passengers. Moreover, they should not be able to escape that responsibility simply by implementing “new” cosmetic reforms which are little more than those they already had in place but declined to enforce.

Clearly the pressure is on operators of public transit systems to ensure that these incidents stop. Over the past year more than thirty people have been killed and more than 150 injured in a cross-continental series of crashes. The public demands safer transit. What the public doesn’t want is for these issues to be swept back under the rug by a series of management decisions which in essence change nothing. These “new” policies appear to be little more than old wine in new bottles. We are entitled to better.

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Claude Wyle

Video of West Portal Muni Light Rail Crash Released

Claude Wyle — Thu, 23 Jul 2009 17:15:00 GMT

I've been keeping my readers updated on last Saturday's Muni Metro accident in the West Portal station, including today's earlier post about how switching to manual control before entering a station may have been common practice for years and even condoned by management since it increases on-time arrivals.

According to today's Examiner:

As of this past Monday, train operators will be written up if they are observed in manual, or cutout, mode without authorization from central control.

Additionally, if a train is seen moving in manual without central control permission, the train controller will stop the train and contact its operator. Hourly announcements started Monday to remind operators that they must not go into manual mode or bypass any vehicle function, or change operating modes, without approval from central control.

Yesterday SFGate.com released several angles of the crash captured on video. I've included one below, but you can see how lucky it is that more people weren't injured by viewing all their Muni accident videos.

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Claude Wyle

Disengaged Safeguards Focus of Muni Light Rail Crash

Claude Wyle — Thu, 23 Jul 2009 10:59:45 GMT

It has been less than a week since two Muni Metro trains collided in San Francisco, injuring nearly fifty people. This crash has been only the latest in a series of accidents that have made the last year or so one of the deadliest in mass-transit history. There have been four major accidents beginning in fall 2008, when a passenger train in Los Angeles, under the control of an engineer distracted while texting, slammed into a freight train, killing 25. In Boston, in May of this year, yet another operator distracted by his cell phone crashed his trolley into the rear end of another, destroying three trolley cars and injuring fifty people. The cause of the Washington D.C. Metro accident in June has yet to be determined. That accident cost nine people their lives, including the operator of the train, Jeanice McMillan, and injured another eighty. There has not been enough time to determine the cause of Saturday’s accident. And yet, those in charge of the system have already begun fighting to shift responsibility.

Here are the facts that appear to be undisputed at this moment. Last Saturday afternoon, as a Muni K train sat at the West Portal station discharging passengers, a Muni L train piloted by Henry Gray entered the station at 20 to 23 mph, nearly twice its normal speed, and struck the K train from behind. All parties appear to concede that Gray had switched the train from automatic to manual control before entering the station. This morning the San Francisco Chronicle is reporting that Gray told investigators that he blacked out immediately after changing to manual control.

The interesting things of course, are the items that the various parties cannot agree on. For instance, Irwin Lum suggests that for several years it has been a common practice for drivers to change to manual control before entering the station. Lum, president of the union that represents metro drivers, appears to be suggesting that Muni Metro bent its own safety regulations in order to give passengers a faster ride. Unsurprisingly, the head of Muni, Nathaniel Ford took umbrage at any suggestion the organization had bent any rules. In a prepared statement, Ford reiterated that safety is top priority.

Should the allegations of union head Lum prove to be accurate, this will be the first crash in recent history caused not by a mechanical failure or individual driver error, but instead by the negligence of the actual operators of the train system. If it is the case that officials within the Muni Metro organization have for years disregarded their own safety regulations, then they have a small amount of blood on their hands, as fortunately no one was killed in this incident. Trains are common carriers, and as such they have a duty to use the highest care and vigilance in order to keep their passengers safe. If these allegations are correct, the operators of the Muni system have failed in that duty.

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Claude Wyle

San Francisco Muni Light Rail Trains Collide

Claude Wyle — Tue, 21 Jul 2009 08:01:27 GMT

In the last three months, nine people have been killed, and more than 170 injured in a series of crashes on the nation’s aging public transit systems. This horrific streak began in Boston, on May 8, when a trolley rear-ended another, sending forty-nine people to local hospitals and causing $9 million in damages, including the loss of three trolley cars. This accident was apparently caused by an inattentive trolley driver who was busy texting. In June, the District of Columbia saw the worst crash in the history of the Metro, with nine deaths and over seventy passengers injured when a metro train rear-ended another. The cause of this crash has yet to be determined, and as the driver was one of the fatalities, this may take some time.

This past Saturday, the run of accidents continued in San Francisco, where nearly fifty people had to be hospitalized after a San Francisco Municipal L train rear-ended a parked K train. Currently, the crash is under investigation, with a union spokesman indicating the driver of the L train blacked out before the accident and a Muni spokesman saying that investigators will look at human and mechanical factors.

So, what can we as passengers on public transit do to keep ourselves safe? First, go to the website of your local transit organization. Most should have a list of safety tips for riders. Here for instance, is the list for BART passengers in San Francisco.

Much of the responsibility for a safe ride is in the hands of the designers and operators of the light rail systems. However, there are things you can do to improve your safety. Basically what all of these tips have in common is the need for passengers to be informed:

- Find out where the emergency phones are
- Find out how to safely evacuate the vehicle in the event of an accident
- Find out where the emergency door releases are
- Find out where the fire extinguishers are located

Public transit is miraculously convenient; we can let someone else handle the driving as we commute to and from work. But, before you settle down to read the paper, catch a brief cat-nap, or get some work done, please inform yourself about what to do in an emergency.

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Claude Wyle

Soledad Bus Accident Reminds Importance of Bus Safety Guidelines

Margaret Embry — Thu, 18 Jun 2009 12:21:49 GMT

A charter bus traveling through Soledad, CA on April 28, 2009 overturned on a Highway 101 overpass killing five and injuring dozens of the French tourist passengers, according to the San Francisco Chronicle. The bus crashed against a side rail and eventually landed on its side in the middle of the road. The French tourists were on an eight-day sightseeing trip through California.

This horrible accident is a reminder of how important it is to understand bus safety guidelines before riding on any type of bus. In California in 2008, there were 1,228 non-fatal bus crashes and 28 fatal bus crashes, according to the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA). On the FMCSA website, you can find safe interstate/motorcoach companies in your area, how to use emergency windows, and audio safety information in several languages.

Some of the safety guidelines the FMCSA presents include knowing where emergency exits are, call 911 in case of an emergency, look to the driver for direction and follow his or her instructions, know where fire extinguishers are located, be aware of the emergency signal device located in the bathroom, use handrails when entering and exiting the bus, and stay seated as much as possible while the bus is in motion.

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Margaret Embry

Cable Car Safety Tips

Margaret Embry — Tue, 16 Jun 2009 16:32:41 GMT

On Thursday, June 4th, a taxi ran into two cable cars in San Francisco, according to the San Francisco Chronicle. It is unknown what caused the crash, but three cable car operators and the taxi driver were both injured. There were no passengers on the cable cars.

Luckily, the four people invovled in the accident had non-life threatening injuries and there were no passengers aboard, because this could have been a much more serious accident. It is important to be aware of safety guidelines for passengers of cable cars and pedestrians who may encouter cable cars or cable car tracks.

According to the San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency (MUNI), some of the cable car safety tips for passengers include:

If riding on cable car running boards do not lean outward into the path of oncoming cable cars and other vehicles.

Respect all cable car employees. Obey their instructions. Do not get in their way, and do not block operating equipment.

If you have children, it is your responsibility to keep them safe. Hold their hands.

Remove backpacks and stow them under the seat or carry them on your lap.

Most importantly, hold on!

Cable car safety tips for pedestrians include:

Unlike other modes of transportation, cable cars cannot swerve to avoid pedestrians.

Always cross in the crosswalk at cable car intersections. Make sure to look both ways before stepping into the crosswalk.

If there is more than one track, always wait for the first cable car to go by so you can see both ways before proceeding. Make sure that another cable car is not approaching in your path.

Please be aware that a green X is the “go ahead” signal for cable cars—not for pedestrians.

For a complete list of cable car safety tips for passengers and pedestrians, please see MUNI's Cable Car Safety page.

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Margaret Embry

Bus Driver Identified In Fatal Bus Crash; Investigation Ongoing

Chrissie Cole — Thu, 30 Apr 2009 17:09:00 GMT

Officials have not determined the cause of a deadly crash of a tour bus Tuesday in Monterey County. The bus, carrying 34 French tourists and their guide, overturned on a Highway 101 overpass in Soledad.

Five people, including the bus driver, were killed and several passengers were injured.

The driver has been identified as John Egnew, 69, of Riverside County, according to the Monterey County coroner. He died of head and neck injuries after he was thrown from the bus.

The names of the four tourists killed have not been released pending family notification.

Twenty-four people were reported hospitalized, of which two appear to have serious injuries. As of Thursday, 20 were still in the hospital.

The crash came a week after the National Transportation Safety Board called on the National Highway Transportation Safety Administration to take steps to ensure that bus passengers are protected from collisions by installing seat belts, strengthening bus roofs and installing recorders to monitor driver fatigue. A spokesman for the agency declined comment.

Safety advocates say, over the past decade federal safety regulators have failed to execute many recommendations.

California Highway Patrol accident investigators have not determined the cause of the crash and are still investigating, including road conditions, the drivers history and the speed and condition of the bus that crashed.

In January 2007, Orion Pacific, the company that owns the bus, was given a “satisfactory” rating and underwent 14 vehicle inspections and six driver inspections with no crashes or violations in the past two years, according to the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Commission.

The tour bus left San Francisco Tuesday on a sightseeing trip that began April 19 in Los Angeles.

Update – The AP reports, in 2005, the driver of the tour bus struck and seriously injured a woman in a Nevada crosswalk.

Egnew admitted not seeing the woman before he struck her with a bus as she and her husband crossed the street, according to a Las Vegas police report provided to the AP.

Egnew pleaded no contest in April 2006 to one misdemeanor count of starting improperly from a stopped position. #

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Chrissie Cole

Five Killed In Monterey County Bus Accident

Chrissie Cole — Wed, 29 Apr 2009 16:27:00 GMT

At least five people were killed and several were injured in a tour bus accident in Monterey County Tuesday on the U.S. 101 overpass near Soledad, officials report.

It appears the driver of the southbound bus veered into a railing on an overpass at Front Street, said Fran Clader of the California Highway patrol.

The tour bus was carrying 36 French and Canadian tourists including the driver and a tour guide when it flipped and rolled over.

When emergency crews arrived, the bus was on its side, with luggage and clothing strewn about the highway. Several of the passengers may have been ejected in the crash. Officials secured the accident scene within minutes and shut down the freeway for two hours.

Every passenger on the bus required medical attention, which proved difficult due to the remoteness of the Salinas Valley site. Eight helicopters and 14 ambulances were present to transport the injured passengers to several hospitals in the region.

An official spokesman for the bus company, Orange County-based Orion Pacific Tour Bus Co., could not be reached for comment, but the company said a statement about the crash would be released later today. #

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Chrissie Cole

Another San Francisco Muni Pedestrian Accident!

Claude Wyle — Thu, 13 Dec 2007 14:36:39 GMT

I wish I was kidding, but I am sad to advise that the San Francisco MUNI has just been involved in its 18th pedestrian accident since this last July. Of these 18 reported MUNI pedestrian accidents, five have caused deaths. While this time, the MUNI bus did not kill anyone, the lady who was struck was taken to San Francisco General with personal injuries. Not surprisingly, although the accident is still under investigation, the MUNI and the SFPD are already casting the blame on the injured pedestrian.
As San Francisco pedestrian accident attorneys, we have our work cut out for us when we take on the City. Did you know that when a MUNI operator is involved in a collision or runs over a pedestrian or when a passenger is injured when they have fallen on a MUNI bus, the first person that the MUNI operator calls is their own dispatch? And then the MUNI sends its OWN investigator to the scene of the accident ,who then takes control of the evidence and gathers the witnesses and takes statements. Then the MUNI investigator decides whether or not to call the police. Isn't it an odd system where the party who is going to get sued sends its own investigator out before the police, and the witnesses are all reached first by that investigator? What happens to witnesses favoring the party who is injured? What happens to videos of accidents that are "lost" by the MUNI? Why is the bus moved before the police show up? Why are the police often not called? I should probably stop whining. This is Life in The Big City of San Francisco, and fighting City Hall is part of our job. Best wishes, Claude

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Claude Wyle