There are plenty of buses in and around Allentown. While most of these vehicles get from place to place safely, there are times when bus accidents occur. At the Dan Doyle Law Group, we are here to help if you or a loved one happen injured due to the careless or negligent actions of a bus driver or bus company. Our bus accident attorneys will thoroughly investigate your case and move to secure the compensation you are entitled to.
There are plenty of buses in and around Allentown and Lehigh County. This includes thousands of school buses as well as many long-distance transportation buses. There are also many LANTA buses that faithfully serve the residents of our area who need to get from place to place around the county.
There are various agencies responsible for regulating these buses, including both state and federal regulatory bodies. Statistics from the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) show that both school and inter-city buses, both of which we have in abundance in this area, are regularly involved in crashes. Thousands of people are injured each year in bus crashes throughout the country.
There are many reasons why bus accidents often lead to severe injuries. Passengers inside of a bus are rarely restrained with seatbelts, including children on school buses. When an accident occurs, passengers can be catapulted around the inside of the vehicle. Those who are struck by a bus, face the impact of a vehicle that weighs tens of thousands of pounds. It is not uncommon for our Allentown bus accident lawyers to help those who have sustained the following in a crash:
We want to note that over half of all school bus crashes in Pennsylvania during the latest reporting year were injury crashes.
Passengers who sustain injuries in a bus accident require medical treatment and sometimes hospitalization, surgery, and rehabilitation. You want to collect compensation for your medical costs if you are involved in a bus accident. Check to see if you qualify.
It doesn’t matter if you are taking a public bus to work, placing your child on a school bus, or taking a charter or party bus to a destination, when an accident occurs the aftermath can be tragic. Buses are large in size and due to limited maneuverability, a bus filled with passengers who are not mandated to wear a seatbelt and allowed to stand while riding, any type of accident will have serious injuries and fatalities.
Bus accidents are caused by factors like bus operators who drive while fatigued, poorly maintained bus equipment or parts, drivers who are under the influence of drugs or alcohol, buses that are improperly loaded or overloaded, and drivers who lack adequate training or were not prescreened for employment.
Similar to a truck, a bus is large in size and weight but unlike trucks, buses hold more passengers than cargo. When comparing between trucks and buses again, the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) administers regulations that can apply to either one of the vehicles. For instance, the maximum time a driver is allowed to operate a bus without taking a break is ten hours. Ten consecutive hours on duty must be immediately followed by eight hours off duty. Drug and alcohol testing is also conducted on drivers to ensure they remain clean and sober before their shifts.
Bus drivers are expected to use good judgment and reasonable care while driving. The FMCSA prohibits bus drivers from distracted driving because many lives are at stake. All drivers are to use reasonable care to avoid any chance of injuring others on the road. Bus drivers are held to even higher standards of care than non-commercial drivers.
Outside the realm of the bus driver’s control, there factors like weather and road conditions, defective buses and parts, and poor maintenance are just as much of a reason as any for what causes bus accidents. There may be a crossover where the driver and the bus owner are liable for the driver’s mistakes. If the bus owner was negligent in screening bus driver applicants and hired someone with a record of bad driving, the owner shares responsibility too.
There are various ways bus accidents happen. Of particular concern are bus crashes that are caused by the negligence of the bus driver or the bus company.
At Dan Doyle Law Group we have worked with many bus accident victims over the years. We are well aware that an accident injury can ultimately change your life. Let us continue our hard work in recovering compensation for your physical, emotional, and financial damages. You shouldn’t have to make any rash decisions without the help of Dan Doyle’s Law Group.
If you or somebody you love has been injured in an accident that was caused by the careless or negligent actions of a bus driver or bus company, seek legal assistance as soon as possible. At the Dan Doyle Law Group, we are ready to step in and help secure the compensation you need. This can include:
Our law group is the best place for you to find a bus accident lawyer that you can always count on. Let our success speak for itself. We never back down from a case and see it through to the finish line.
If you need an Allentown bus accident attorney, you can contact us by clicking here or calling 215-987-3730 for a free consultation.
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