Q: Why would it be a transportation provider’s fault if a passenger falls getting on or off a vehicle that is not even moving?
A: Multiple reasons: Most people hurt this way are elderly or disabled and require assistance; stepwells are the worst-designed features of almost every public transportation vehicle; drivers provide little assistance and are rarely trained to…and on and on.
Comment: While a seeing eye dog would know what’s wrong with most of these omissions, and they involve the lowest degree of difficulty (the vehicle is not even moving, and the driver has nothing else to do but observe or assist passengers on and off), this incident scenario comprises more than a full fourth of the 700 or so lawsuits I’ve worked on.
Q: Is it the driver’s fault if a passenger falls while alighting from the rear door?
A: Not always. But usually (particularly with transit buses). Often drivers “nose in” their buses – leaving too great a gap from the bottom step (or outer edge of a low-floor bus) for many passengers to negotiate. (And unless they are the first one to alight, they do not have a reasonable chance to gauge the edge of the bottom step or floor edge from the curb – so cannot know whether to step down to the pavement (14 inches from a high-floor bus, 12 inches from a low-floor bus) or stretch to reach a curb (where there even is one). Also, every transit bus can be configured to “kneel” at the rear door. Yet precious few transit agencies “spec” their bus orders to include this relatively inexpensive feature. Finally, stepwells are almost always the poorest-designed features of most public transportation vehicles – including virtually all types of vehicles deployed in every mode but passenger rail, taxis, limousines and TNCs (e.g., Uber or Lyft).
Comment: Only vehicles with pneumatic suspension systems (i.e., transit buses and motorcoaches) usually contain this feature, although hybrid suspension systems occasionally appear in large minibus conversions (mostly those built on International or Freightliner chassis).
Q: What is the industry standard of care for assisting a passenger to board or alight from a vehicle?
A: This differs greatly by mode. The greatest degree of care is needed to help any and every disabled, and many elderly, passengers board or alight – yet many drivers fail to honor this standard. – more in some modes than in others. More assistance is provided to paratransit and non-emergency medical transportation (NEMT) service passengers than to taxi or transit services – whereas most motorcoach and limousine drivers typically provide excellent assistance.
Comment: Transit drivers are the least helpful among all the modes. In fact, since most of their schedules are too tight, they often fail to even kneel the front corner of the vehicle, where the door is (kneeling and then [after boarding] raising this corner takes about six seconds. But a typical transit route can contain 30 to 60 or more stops; so a lot of time can be shaved from a route whose driver never or rarely kneels the bus’ front corner.
Q: What is the most common cause of this negligence?
A: In more than half of the 700+ cases I’ve done, the vehicle was running behind schedule – and the schedule was usually too tight – in half of them! Drivers cut corners – or commit safety compromises (see safetycompromises.com) to try to remain on schedule or, in far more cases, to not fall hopelessly behind schedule.
Comment: Management rarely cares. Most public transportation systems are not sued, or not successfully, for these failures. And with their strong unions protecting the “bad apples” [I am not anti-union in general, and have assisted unions in labor relations cases], drivers are rarely even reprimanded for such omissions. The principal exceptions involve paratransit and non-emergency medical transportation (NEMT) service (see comments below).
Q: What regulations apply to boarding or alighting?
A: Basically none. But the industry standards – based on what is reasonable and prudent – is high for many modes, and an expert with serious experience in various modes should be very convincing. Plus excerpts from the better training manuals (which I have) document these standards.
Comment: In modes serving disabled passengers, all should be assisted on and off the vehicle, while only in certain states (or according to certain contractual provisions) must passengers be assisted between the vehicle and the trip’s origin or destination.
Q: If a driver does not know how to physically assist an ambulatory or semi-ambulatory passenger (i.e., with a walker or cane) up or down a stepwell, is there nothing he/she can do?
A: Plenty. Most important, most vehicles (including all transit buses and all motorcoaches) are “accessible” (i.e., contain a lift or ramp). The ADA requires that any passenger wishing to board or alight via the wheelchair lift or ramp may do so, and need only ask the driver. Both lift platforms and ramps have handles on both sides. Plus the driver can accompany the passenger, perhaps lending one arm to grasp or holding onto a hand or arm of the passenger (or on a ramp., walking behind [ascending] or in front of [descending) the passenger, holding on and/or spotting, depending on what is needed.
Comment: Few drivers in any mode other than paratransit and schoolbus service are trained to help passengers board or alight, as simple as this is. This is no excuse, and failing to assist a disabled or very elderly passenger on board (even if no request is made), or a small child, is negligent, and reflects a reckless disregard for their safety.
Q: What about large vehicles – like transit buses and motorcoaches? Must a driver operating a vehicle with scores of passengers on board provide passenger assistance to someone who is not a wheelchair user (where assistance is obviously needed)?
A: Yes. The industry standard for motorcoach drivers is to stand at the bottom of the stepwell and either physically assist or “spot” every passenger (disabled or otherwise) onto and off the bottom step – and physically assist someone needing more help up and down the stepwell. And every motorcoach has a kneeling feature to lower the bottom step (always about 14 inches above the ground – a difficult step up or (especially) down for even non-disabled or non-elderly passengers. In contrast, few transit drivers bother to help anyone. But it should be obvious from merely looking at them that many passengers need help, and there is no excuse (including running behind schedule) to fail to provide it.
Comment: The vehicle’s equipment is not usually sufficient by itself. Passengers cannot operate lifts or ramps. Some need help standing on lifts or walking or wheeling up or down ramps. Plus some passenger need help on board getting to or from their seats.
Q: Can the positioning of the vehicle at the stop be a negligence issue?
A: Absolutely. The industry standard is for the vehicle to pull within six to 12 inches from the curb (or edge of boarding/alighting area); beyond that distance is known as the “gray zone.” Large vehicles have “kneeling features” which can lower the front entrance door four to five inches, and for vehicles that have them, they should always be engaged when the vehicle lies in the gray zone, and the passenger would have to step down onto the roadway surface. And kneeling features should always be deployed for a disabled or frail elderly passenger.
Comment: Smaller vehicles do not have this feature, so providing assistance to those passengers who need it is even more important, and not providing it is usually negligent.
Q: Does a properly equipped vehicle meet the standard of care and relieve the defendant and driver of negligence?
A: No. Passengers cannot operate this equipment. And as noted, many need help boarding or alighting even with this equipment, even when the vehicle is properly positioned against the curb.
Comment: Drivers of some larger vehicles tend to “nose in.” This is a problem for transit buses, with rear doors, as it places the outer edge of the rear bottom step too far from the curb, in the gray zone. (Plus the tail of the bus sticking out into traffic prevents the driver from observing vehicles approach from the rear, as his or her view through the driver’s side exterior rear view mirror is blocked.)
Q: Do the standards for assisting non-disabled/non-elderly passengers differ by mode?
A: Yes. Limousine and motorcoach drivers must at least “spot” all passengers by standing at the edge of the entrance/exit doorways. Taxi drivers should as well, but usually do this only at highly-visible venues – like airports, hotel and upscale restaurants. At the other extreme, transit drivers are not expected (much less required) to get out of their seats to even spot or escort most passengers on or off the vehicle – although it is the industry standard to do so to assist a disabled or frail elderly passenger. More importantly, the industry standard for drivers of modes serving more vulnerable passengers (like paratransit or non-emergency medical service) should assist every passenger (other than their nurses or attendants) on or off the vehicle.
Comment: In some states, drivers of non-emergency medical services are required to assist their passengers between the vehicle and the origin or destination. But even on transit buses, and even low-floor transit buses – in any state — it is much safer to board and alight a cane or walker user via the lift or ramp.
Q: Is training for something as simple as boarding or alighting the industry standard?
A: Absolutely – and the huge number of boarding and alighting cases I’ve done speaks to this. However, in most cases in most modes, training for boarding or alighting is rarely provided. (The most salient exceptions are motorcoach transportation (where “spotting” all passengers at the base of the stepwell is viewed more as a matter of good “customer service”) and limousine service.
Comment: Training for boarding or alighting is rarely a requirement, with the exception of boarding or alighting a wheelchair user. Oddly, while most “drivers’ manuals” devote little or no verbiage to this, where contractors or brokers are involved, training is almost always a contractual requirement. Yet training for these procedures is rarely provided by the contractor, broker or “lead” agency (the public agency receiving the funds). And often not provided by the contractor or service provider (under a brokerage structure) that provides the actual services.
Q: What are the regulations for entrances and exits on public transportation vehicles?
A: There are none. And none at any government level. There are not even any industry standards for any. – even while there are state and municipal regulations for these on buildings (i.e., building codes).
Comment: There are some “rules of thumb” for stepwells on those vehicles that have them, and most large vehicle manufacturers follow them. Yet I have examined vehicles (in lawsuits and at trade shows) on which every step’s riser height was different (something one never finds in any building). Usually, the bottom step’s tread depth is wider (especially on larger vehicles like transit buses and motorcoaches).
Q: Why does so much negligence and disregard occur in the U.S. public transportation field?
A: Public transportation services almost completely lack any semblance of monitoring and enforcement. Even with many vehicles in most modes equipped with one to 12 video cameras, the video units are almost never pulled, and the footage viewed, except after a serious incident has occurred.
Comment: In some modes (transit in particular), video footage is highly spoliated. Also, the public transportation field may have the fewest genuine expert witnesses than any industry in the country. And many plaintiff’s attorneys who think they understand the case (they rarely do) or how to make the most money from it (they never do) are sometimes not interested in engaging this minority of experts, preferring to engage mediocre parrots and shills who will echo the attorney’s beliefs (or those residing not far from the incident scene). And while plaintiffs’ experts are eventually paid by the client’s two-thirds of the settlement of verdict, any many or most cases involving boarding or alighting – and more so in other scenarios described in this section of this website’s HomePage — are unlosable, plaintiff’s counsel often ration their expert’s work as though their costs are exorbitant. In short, public transportation agencies and companies are largely not held accountable for their (and their drivers’ and attendants’) errors, omissions and reckless disregard.
Q: If someone who just boarded falls down walking to his or her seat, is this the defendant’s fault?
A: When the vehicle moves before the passenger has reached a point of seating or securement (e.g., a vertical or horizontal stanchion), always. The industry standard is for the driver to not move the bus until a boarding passenger has completed this.
Comment: I have at least six excerpts from policy documents throughout the country stating this (in very similar language). A few transit agencies (New York CTA, New Jersey Transit. Santa Monica “Blue Bus,” etc.) employ the “white line” rule: Once a passenger has stepped over the while line, he or she is “fair game.” I have never lost a boarding case to a transit agency employing this ruse. Also, on a transit bus (which has a rear door, and “articulated” buses have three doors), signage often mounted near the front of the bus (stupidly not visible to those boarding) often requests passengers to walk to the rear (as this facilitates schedule adherence), otherwise compromised when the front door is clogged by passengers boarding and alighting. (Passengers must board via the front door, in order to pay the fares.)
Q: Where there are a hierarchy of agencies and contractors (or brokers) – or even, on occasion, all three, which is the most responsible for negligence in boarding or alighting (or most things)?
A: The “lead” agency (or funding agency) – even while this agency delegates authority to the contractor or broker. (The fact that every entity indemnifies the one above it has no bearing on the negligence – although it may affect settlement and trial dynamics (a “lead” agency will not always protect its contractors vigorously because its settlements or loses are usually overed by the contract or broker beneath it).
Comment: Many, if not most plaintiffs’ attorneys, either fail to sue the lead agency. And of those filing against a broker, they almost always make little effort to lean on them – even while the dominant broker in the U.S. (Modivcare), has the deepest pockets – exponentially – of any public transportation agency or company in the nation of all (possibly with the exception of Uber), and cannot dare risk its uber-lucrative contract if someone like myself testifies about how it operates. However, boarding and alighting errors and (mostly) omissions are seen as lesser torts than most other incident scenarios, and contractors or brokers are not at great risk of losing their contracts for even a litany of reckless disregard, overall, when an incident of this type is the subject of the lawsuit.