IN TWO SEPARATE ACCIDENTS ON THE SAME DAY, SEPTA BUSES STRIKE AND KILL ONE PHILADELPHIA GRANDMOTHER WHO HAD THE RIGHT-OF-WAY AND SEVERELY INJURED ANOTHER HANDICAPPED VICTIM IN A WHEELCHAIR.
On Monday, September 8, 2008, a 74 year old grandmother of six was on her way to buy lotto tickets and chat with friends over coffee when she was struck by a SEPTA bus at Broad Street and Oregon Avenue and rushed to Thomas Jefferson Hospital in Philadelphia, PA with severe trauma. Unfortunately, the grandmother died at 4:00 p.m. on September 10, 2008, just three hours after Philadelphia police indicated that a SEPTA bus struck and injured another man in a wheelchair at 8th Street and Girard Avenue in Philadelphia, PA. According to the Philadelphia Daily News, SEPTA officials noted one similarity with both incidents; both victims had the right-of-way when they were hit. According to the Philadelphia Daily News, SEPTA spokesman, William Maloney, stated that the grandmother, who was struck by SEPTA bus, was “well within the crosswalk, we just don’t know what occurred”.
In the other separate incident, Philadelphia police stated that the Route 47 bus turned onto 8th Street from Girard Avenue about 1:00 p.m. on September 10, 2008, just as a man in his 40's rolled his wheelchair into the crosswalk, where he had the right-of-way. According to the Philadelphia Daily News article, the footrest of the chair caught under the bus’s left front tire and dragged him 5 to 10 feet. Police said he was treated for a fractured foot at Hahnemann University Hospital. SEPTA officials stated that neither the driver or the victim saw each other because of trucks parked near the corner. (Philadelphia Daily News Article)
I have written much on my blog about bus accidents and the increase of fatalities and deaths as a result of careless driving and other faults. To this writer, it is unacceptable and causes extraordinary concern that two innocent pedestrians, who clearly had the right-of-way, were hit in one day by SEPTA drivers in two separate accidents. (www.reiffandbily.com)
At the Philadelphia bus accident and personal injury law firm of Reiff and Bily, we have been handling claims against SEPTA and other bus companies for almost 30 years. Unfortunately, in a SEPTA bus, train or subway case, there are limits to the amount of compensation payable to victims. Under the law of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, SEPTA is a Commonwealth agency protected by the sovereign immunity act and damages are limited to $250,000 in favor of one claim and $1,000,000 total per accident regardless of the number of accident victims. Unfortunately, there are numerous catastrophic and fatal SEPTA accidents happening every year in the Commonwealth causing people to sustain life threatening injuries and/or death for which there may not be adequate compensation. SEPTA is the 5th largest transit system in the United States with a daily average of over 1 million riders.
For over the past 30 years, the experienced Pennsylvania bus accident lawyers of Reiff and Bily have litigated on behalf of innocent claimants many easily preventable bus accidents. We have witnessed many cases where bus drivers were not paying attention, improperly trained or failed to have a complete and proper background check. Many of our cases have revealed clear SEPTA driver error and all too often death or catastrophic and life-altering injuries are the result.
As gas prices continue to rise in Pennsylvania and the rest of the nation, bus transportation has increased to an all time high. As a direct consequence of this rise in bus passenger usage is the increase of bus accidents that will cause personal injuries and death. A wave of bus accidents in Pennsylvania and throughout the country in the summer of 2008 shined a spotlight on the need to place a higher emphasis on passenger and pedestrian safety. This calls to question as to why accidents such as the two separate accidents that occurred, which are so easily preventable, are increasing with frequency. When it comes to the legal responsibility owed by bus drivers and bus companies to their passengers and others, a bus is considered a common carrier. Such common carriers owe their passengers a greater duty of safety and protection than an ordinary car. Bus companies, including SEPTA, owe a higher level of responsibility to the public to drive with the utmost care and protect passengers, pedestrians, and other victims sharing the road from collision, injury, and death.
Despite this higher level of responsibility as indicated, bus drivers do not always drive safely and in some cases are not trained properly. As a result, in many cases innocent people are injured and/or killed. Bus accidents can be caused by a variety of factors, including but not limited to the following: driver negligence, inadequate security, dangerous roadways, weather conditions, negligence, defective product, improper maintenance, improper training, lack of safety equipment and/or procedures, crash-worthiness and failure to contain.
If you or a loved one has been involved in a serious bus accident or SEPTA accident, you may be unprepared for the intricacies in dealing with a claim and require legal assistance during your time of need. The Pennsylvania bus accident law firm of Reiff and Bily has earned national respect and recognition from our peers for the successful representation and successful recovery of damages for bus accident victims. We have over 30 years of experience handling serious and catastrophic injury litigation. We have been highly rated by our peers locally, nationally and internationally. The Philadelphia bus accident attorneys at Reiff and Bily work on a contingent fee basis, charging a small percentage of the recovery.
They will not get paid one cent unless there is a successful recovery and have handled thousands of personal injury cases since 1979. As mentioned above, SEPTA has limits in the amount of insurance coverage that is payable in an accident case and therefore, that insurance coverage must be divided between every person injured in an accident. It is very important to secure proper legal representation to insure that you will obtain your fair share of the available coverage, as well as explore other sources of recovery above and beyond the limited amount payable by SEPTA.
The experienced bus accident lawyers at Reiff and Bily will diligently investigate your bus accident case and tirelessly work to help you achieve a timely resolution of your case. Please contact us for a free consultation at 1-800-421-9595 or (www.reiffandbily.com)
