Most people will travel using a form of mass transit at some point. These methods of travel include airplanes, trains and buses, among many others. Although this type of travel may provide convenience, passengers are also placing their safety in the hands of others. For this reason, it is important that mass transit companies provide the utmost safety to their passengers and others with whom they may come into contact.
A mass transit accident recently occurred in New Jersey when a woman was killed by a transit bus in Camden. She had just left a grocery store and was attempting to flag down the bus while on her phone. According to witnesses, the bus driver saw the woman and was approaching a red light. However, instead of slowing down, the driver allegedly hit the accelerator and ran the woman over. She was killed as a result of the collision. The bus driver was also hospitalized after the accident due to distress, but was not injured.
Various modes of public transportation such as buses, taxis and subways are considered common carriers. Common carriers are businesses that transport people in exchange for money. They are required to apply the highest possible level of care to ensure the safety of their passengers and others where possible. If they fail to meet this level by not warning passengers of an unsafe condition, failing to abide to regulations or having a negligent driver, they may have liability to those injured. To establish liability on the part of a carrier, injured victims must show that they failed to fulfill their required level of care, that they were injured as a result and that they sustained damages because of their injuries.
There are many actions for which a common carrier may be liable including striking pedestrians, doors shutting on passengers and slip and fall accidents. Anyone injured by the actions of a common carrier may seek the counsel of a skilled personal injury attorney to help them determine the evidence required and the damages to which they may be entitled.
