Mass Transit Accidents and Their Causes

Mass Transit Accidents and Their Causes

Traveling via public transportion is definitely safer than a car, but accidents or death due to someone else’s negligence can never be totally avoided. Public transportation includes vehicle services that transport customers on local and regional routes.


Public and Mass Transit Vehicles

The number of unlinked trips using public transport in 2007 stood at 10.3 billion, with 58.5% trips being via bus, 29.3% by heavy rail and 12.2% by others. Around 14 million Americans ride the public transport everyday and 34 million trips are made each weekday in the US.

Vehicles that fall under the mass transit category are:

* Buses
* L-train
* Mono Rails
* Amtrak
* Cable cars
* Airlines
* Ferries
* Street Cars
* Railroads
* Trolleybuses
* Planes
* Taxi cabs
* Shuttles
* Limousine services
* Elevators
* Vanpools
* Escalators

Accidents can happen in several ways but serious accidents involving the mass transit system usually happen due to carelessness or speeding. Here is a quick look at accidents and their possible causes:

Bus accidents

* Defective condition on the stairs of a bus.
* Accidents due to overcrowding.
* Bus driven in a negligent manner.
* Faulty tires.
* Injuries caused by sudden jerks or stops of a bus.
* There are occasions where the bus has a pertinent manufacturing defect that leads to a fatal accident. The person responsible for the defect can be the designer, manufacturer, engineer or the distributor.

Ferry accidents:

* These often happen when the ferry loses power and ultimately hits the dock, hurting the passengers.
* Due to a defective product or negligence.

Subway Accidents

* Turnstile defect can cause an accident
* In a situation where a passenger gets stuck between the closing subway car doors or is caught in the doorway of a moving train
* Imperfections in the tracks - large space between the subway platform edge and the door of the train
* Low or no lighting – potential danger looms due to poor lighting, especially in the spaces between the platform and the incoming train.
* Ill maintained stairways
* Faulty Brakes
* Operational errors

Plane Crash

* Faulty seat belt
* Speed sensors
* Faulty altimeter
* Defective tires
* Negligence of airport staff

If anyone close to you has been involved in an accident that has led to serious injury or wrongful death, immediately contact an experienced attorney to defend your case and get justice. Cases against the public transit authorities normally take time. It is advisable to carry the necessary documents needed for your defense.


About Solomon Neuhardt:
Solomon Neuhardt is the owner and lead attorney at Neuhardt Law Firm, a member of the American Bar Association, the American Association for Justice, and represents individuals and families in personal injury cases, including accidents, medical malpractice, defective products, dog bites, and insurance disputes.

Helmets can save life

Cyclists in Montana are probably the most ‘liberated’ people in the US, since the state of Montana does not have a helmet law in place. People need to, however, understand the difference between “freedom of choice” and safety. Wearing proper headgear can often make a difference between life and death. A helmet that costs less than $50 generates $570 worth of indirect benefits to the society, which includes medical costs caused by bike-related head injuries, future earnings and other tangible resources.

Bicycle Accidents – Some Facts

Cyclists are recommended to wear safety helmets at all times. There are around 73-85 million bicycle riders in the US.  Around 1,300 deaths per year occur in the US due to bicycle related accidents, and head injuries account for over 60% of the bicycle related deaths. Here are some facts about bicycle accidents:

·        Each year, 196 children less than the age of 15 die from bicycle-related injuries. 

• Over 90 percent cyclists meet with fatal accidents on US roads
• Most of the victims are male and without protective gear
• Riders without a helmet are 14 times more susceptible than a helmeted rider.
• Helmets can protect head injuries affecting your brain, estimated at anywhere around 45 to 88 percent of the times.
• Bicycle helmets offer substantial protection to the forehead and midface.
• Non-helmeted cyclist injuries costs around $81 million each year in medical expenses, whereas indirect expenses add up to $2.3 billion.
• About 75 percent of bicycle-related deadly accidents can be prevented among children with helmet use.
• Most of the accidents happen to boys.
• Falls are the cause of over 90 per cent of the accidents
• The head is hit in 38 percent of the accidents.
• If 85 percent of all child cyclists wear helmets for one year, the lifetime medical cost savings can be anywhere between $197 to $256 million
• Every bicycle helmet saves health insurers $57 and auto insurers $17.
• One third of the bicycle victims have high alcohol levels.

There can be no argument that safety helmets can be highly effective in preventing head related injuries, thereby minimizing health costs and, above all, saving lives. However, faulty helmet cases are also reported these days. If someone close to you has suffered brain damage or injury on the road due to someone else’s negligence, immediately contact a personal injury lawyer. The victim is entitled to monetary compensation against physical injury and emotional pain.

About Solomon Neuhardt:
Solomon Neuhardt is the owner and lead attorney at Neuhardt Law Firm, a member of the American Bar Association, the American Association for Justice, and represents individuals and families in personal injury cases, including accidents, medical malpractice, defective products, dog bites, and insurance disputes.