Thousands of people choose to use public transportation as their way to get around every day. When they board a bus or train, they do so with confidence that they will arrive at their destination safe and without incident. Unfortunately, no system is perfect and accidents can happen within the public transportation system of a city. When these accidents do happen, they can cause injuries ranging from minor to catastrophic. If you have been the victim of a public transportation accident, you may be left confused as to what actions you can take.
When these accidents occur, they are almost always due to negligence. As a legal term, negligence means that a person or entity had a duty to act a certain way, that they failed to properly act in this way, and this failure led to the injuries or damages of a victim. In the case of public transportation systems, the employees and agencies that run the trains and busses have a duty to their passengers to ensure that they get to their destination safely. When they fail in this duty, they can be sued by the victims of the accident for compensation for their injuries.
There are many things that can cause these accidents. To name a few, improper maintenance and bus or train operator error can lead to dangerous accidents that can claim lives. In both of these cases, the operators of the public transportation vehicles failed to properly protect their passengers and can be found negligent.
In most cases, the personal injury claim would be filed against the transportation authority responsible for the public transit system, not the individual operators of the vehicles. This is due to the legal concept of “vicarious liability,” which holds entities and businesses responsible for the actions of their employees.
If you have been injured in a public transportation accident, you should contact a skilled and experienced car accident attorney Dekalb County GA trusts. An attorney who is familiar with public transportation cases will be able to analyze the factors of your case and determine what path will be best for you. As the injuries that result from these accidents can be severe, you deserve the best representation to make sure that you are compensated for any medical bills or lost wages you incurred. With a skilled attorney, you can rest easy and heal knowing that your case is in good hands that are fighting for you.
Thanks to our friends and contributors from Andrew R. Lynch, P.C. for their insight into public transportation accidents.