Yes. Low-cost coach operator Megabus serves more than 50 U.S. cities, providing discount travel since 2006. Along the way, the public passenger carrier has been sued in connection with deaths and injuries related to bus crashes.
For the 24 months that ended Dec. 16, 2019, Megabus coaches crashed 10 times. One person died and two people were injured in those wrecks. In seven cases, the wreckage was bad enough to require a tow. Those statistics are from the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA), the agency that holds Megabus, Greyhound and other passenger transport companies accountable for bus safety.
Megabus Crash History
At Megabus over the years, the agency has followed up on numerous high-profile bus crashes. In 2010, a double-decker Megabus crashed into a railroad overpass in upstate New York, killing four people on the top deck. In 2014, 26 passengers were hurt when a Megabus rolled over near Seymour, Indiana. In 2015, 19 were injured when a Megabus traveling from Chicago to Atlanta crashed. A year later, a Megabus caught fire en route from Chicago to Milwaukee.
More recently, three people were injured after a Megabus crashed into several parked cars in Washington D.C. Police said the crash happened at 7th and H streets in the northeast portion of the city around noon. There was a report of the bus dragging one of the cars for two blocks.
According to FMCSA, New Jersey-based Megabus carries a minimum of $5 million in insurance coverage. The bus company has maintained a satisfactory safety rating, but that hasn’t stopped injury and wrongful death lawyers from taking Megabus to court — successfully — over fire and collision injuries.
Aside from lawsuits against Megabus, the company has twice been targeted by FMCSA for enforcement actions. One case developed in 2014 and the other in 2017. In the first case, the company was fined $3,660. Three years later, safety concerns led to a fine of $6,020 at Megabus. Both violations were coded in the record books at FMCSA as “unsafe operations forbidden,’’ or “a motor vehicle shall not be operated in such a condition as to likely cause an accident or a breakdown of the vehicle.’
Megabus has said it takes safety as its top priority. Bus accident lawyers, judges and the courts hold the company accountable when there is evidence of driver error, speeding, following too close, lane violations, driving too fast for conditions, improper driver’s training or licensure, mechanical failure, shortcuts on bus maintenance and other negligence. If you were injured in a bus accident or a family member was killed, contact an attorney experienced in transportation law.
Transportation Law
You need an expert to represent your interests in obtaining adequate and proper compensation for medical expenses, pain, suffering, loss of companionship, loss of income, future loss of income, future medical bills and other costs. Only certain law firms dwell on passenger rights in head-to-head battles against major bus companies. Those fights often involve a push to obtain full payment from insurance brokers who underwrite risk in the motor coach industry. Bus passenger rights should come first.