The day faded into a dark, cold evening and I wanted my new leather jacket badly as I searched the huge parking lot of long, white lines, black tar, and gray buses, but the jacket, my group, and the bus were nowhere to be found. Always the wanderer, I eventually found my misplaced group huddling for warmth and wondering how we were going to get back to
Boston from
D.C. now that our bus and driver had gone AWOL.
Some time later, we learned our driver hadn’t taken off with the bus full of coats and bags as some suspected (most of our belongings were returned). Rather, a “nervous breakdown” was the explanation given. Thankfully, our driver didn’t have an episode while actually behind the wheel and cause an accident. We were lucky. A serious bus accident this past summer killed 14 people and injured 40, leaving only one person unharmed and alive. Turns out, the operator was operating illegally.
Human error is a significant factor in motorcoach and passenger van accidents. Medical problems such as our driver had, a lack of training, fatigue, and poor judgment are not easy to guard against. Although the number of accidents among motorcoaches is small (it’s actually one of the safest ways to travel), many group transportation accidents can be avoided.
There are a few things you can do to ensure that you and your fellow passengers are safe. The most significant is to check the ratings of the company you’re considering and of the make and model of the vehicle (see “Along For the Ride,” page 37). Here are some other precautions to consider.
LICENSING: Ask for proof that the driver has a commercial driver’s license (CDL) with a passenger endorsement. This license requires a specific knowledge and skills test. The law states that any driver transporting more than 15 passengers must have a passenger-endorsed license. If you’re not hiring a commercial vehicle but rather are using one donated or from a civic/church group, or you have less than 15 people, consider hiring a trained and licensed driver even if it isn’t legally required.
TIRES: When using a van, ask when the tires were last inspected and insist that the company inspect them before you load up. Ask too how frequently the van is driven. Vans that aren’t driven on a regular basis are at risk for blowing tires and rolling over.
OVERLOADING: Never allow more passengers to board a vehicle than specified by the manufacturer (ask the capacity ahead of time). And the more passengers in a smaller-sized van, the more dangerous, even if the number of passengers is within approved capacity.
AGE: As new, stronger regulations are passed, new vehicles will have to abide by them and will therefore contain stronger roofs, better designs to minimize impact, seat belts, and technological innovations that monitor a driver’s hours on the road and accidents. So choose newer vehicle models if possible. Although accidents are inevitably beyond your control, these safety procedures will increase your chance of survival or withstanding injury:
SEAT BELTS: Insist riders wear seat belts and that there is a working strap for every seat. This isn’t just to prevent injury from a collision, but because 56 percent of fatalities are due to passengers being ejected from their seats. Only one motorcoach manufacturer has seat belts, according to the United Motorcoach Association (UMA), but other types of vehicles should have them.
SEATING: Advise passengers not to sit in the first few seats of the vehicle, where the vast majority of fatalities and injuries occur.
DISTRACTIONS: Caution passengers about standing in the aisle or talking to the driver.
HANDLING: Vans don’t handle like cars and take special skill during a rollover. Don’t use an inexperienced or unlicensed passenger driver.
BAGGAGE: Ask how much luggage each passenger can bring aboard if there is no underneath storage compartment. Don’t allow baggage to be stored in a roof rack or strapped to the back of a vehicle.
There is plenty of opportunity for motor carrier safety to improve, and you can help by bringing your voice to the debate. Kevin Presley, the vice president of industry relations for the UMA, describes the nature of the business: “Manufacturers will only build to government specifications, not more.” So urge government officials to enact the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) recommendations, many of which have gone unheeded for years.
Although you can contact your representative or senator, it’s more effective if you advocate through an association or trade group you belong to or go directly to the congressional or Cabinet committee responsible for improving transportation safety.