A Look At Recent Megabus Problems: Coincidence Or Pattern?

[mark1447 685]

It’s been a rough week for Megabus, as the discount intercity bus line has been involved in two fatal accidents in Illinois, and agreed to pay $5 million to settle a lawsuit filed by the family of a man struck and killed by a Megabus two years ago.

 

The list of problems for Megabus got a bit longer on Thursday, when Chopper 2 HD spotted a Megabus near Joliet, pulled over to get a new tire on I-55, forcing passengers to switch to another bus.

 

Is all of this just a coincidence, or a more troubling pattern of problems for Megabus? CBS 2’s Derrick Blakley went to find out.

 

Megabus is a fast-growing, discount intercity bus line, but are they cutting safety as well?

 

The company has been involved in four public incidents in the past week, two of them fatal.

 

Gov. Pat Quinn on Thursday added his voice to the list of critics. He urged U.S. Department of Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood to have the federal government investigate the company, the Sun-Times Media Wire reported.

 

“We believe that a full federal investigation into the operations and history of the firm would provide a baseline for any policy changes or other considerations that might logically result from what is learned about these crashes,” Quinn wrote.

 

Ald. Robert Fioretti (2nd) is asking the Chicago Department of Transportation to take a closer look at Megabus operations, and make sure they’re complying with all state and local laws.

 

“I’m always concerned with discount prices and what they mean for the service to the individual,” he said. “We have to make sure that the passenger safety is utmost of concern of anybody. Since they’re in, and they use the streets of the city of Chicago … we’ve got to make sure it’s a safe bus, it’s a safe entity, it’s a safe transportation.”

 

Read More + Video:

 

http://chicago.cbslocal.com/2012/08/09/a-look-at-recent-megabus-problems-coincidence-or-pattern/

[theaveragejoe 282]

Most of those problems werent Megabus' fault. The bus fire looks like it was defect from Van Hool as the bus was built this year! The tire blow out in IL could have been from running over anything on the roadway. Its more just bad luck then anything for Mega.