We have covered many serious bus accidents including the recent Megabus crash in downstate Illinois which killed a Missouri student traveling with her parents. One investigation into another recent bus crash revealed that a fatigued driver was responsible for a March 2011 bus accident that left 15 people dead and another 15 people injured on I-95 in the Bronx borough of New York City.
This accident shares many of the same facts commonly seen in coach bus crashes. Prosecutors alleged that the bus driver was fatigued and speeding in a work zone at the time of the crash. The bus was driving 78 mph
“At no time did the defendant ever apply the brakes, not for a second. Not the brakes, not the gear shift, nothing,” prosecutor Gary Weil said during the opening statements for the bus driver’s criminal trial for criminally negligent homicide. The bus was en route to the Mohegan Sun casino in Connecticut from New York City’s Chinatown at the time of the crash.
“He did none of those things with 32 innocent souls behind him,” the prosecutor added. “He knew the risks of driving while fatigued. He ignored those risks. He caused this crash to occur.”
Federal safety regulators shut down World Wide Tours, the operator of the bus, after the crash. Although the driver claims to have been cut-off by a semi-truck, investigators have found no evidence that this occurred. The driver also has a terrible driving record that includes at least 18 driving suspensions.
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