On June 18 at around 5 pm, an elderly pedestrian was struck by a local sightseeing bus in New York. An anchor with a local news outlet reported that the victim was taken to Bellevue in serious condition. The source did not specify the injuries suffered. A spokesman with the tour bus company, CitySights NY, expressed the business’ sympathy for the injured woman and also noted the company’s track record of safety in a public statement.

According to police, the 74-year-old woman was hit by a sightseeing bus in the West Village while attempting to cross Seventh Avenue. The road was closed for an unspecified length of time while authorities investigated the accident. Video of the accident scene taken from a local news helicopter showed the bus stopped slightly beyond a crosswalk. This could be because the woman was crossing the street legally when the bus struck her.

If the police investigation uncovers that the woman was, in fact, in the crosswalk when the accident happened, she may want to consider suing the driver and, perhaps, his employer. If hired, a personal injury attorney would assess the strength of potential cases against both parties after a thorough review of the police investigation and the woman’s own account of what took place.

In an civil suit against the driver, the woman’s attorney would argue that his or her negligence caused the accident. Potential examples of negligent driving could be cellphone use while behind the wheel, speeding, disobeying other traffic laws or simply taking one’s eyes off of the road. Negligence on the employer’s part would likely be in the form of having failed to perform its due diligence when hiring the driver or insufficiently training him or her for the job.

Source: CBS New York, “Pedestrian Struck, Injured By Sightseeing Bus In West Village”, June 18, 2014