Bus Accidents In Louisiana 

Private and public buses in Louisiana serve as one of the most efficient means to transport large groups of people. However, accidents involving buses can result in the most devastating injuries and even death due to their sheer mammoth size. Most buses do not have standard safety features in other passenger vehicles, like seat belts or airbags. Buses are also more prone to the risk of tip-over or rollover accidents.

Accidents involving charter passengers and school buses have far-reaching impacts on the affected victims and their families. Victims of bus accidents are often high school students, senior citizens, and the less privileged.

The Mother’s Day Casino Bus Crash, also known as the New Orleans casino bus crash on May 9, 1999, remains one of the most deadly bus crashes in the country’s history. While off Interstate 610, en route to the Casino Magic in Bay St. Louis, Mississippi, the bus driver rolled over three lanes of traffic and crashed through a guardrail in a head-on collision into a barrier. Twenty-two lives were lost, primarily of senior citizens in the accident. 

Investigators found severe medical conditions, including marijuana and an antihistamine influence, had impaired the bus driver.

Public transportation use in Louisiana remains higher than in many southern states. Compared to the ten Southern states, Louisiana has the fourth-highest percentage of public transit use. 

Louisiana’s most prominent public transportation agencies include the New Orleans Regional Transit Authority, the Capital Area Transit System in Baton Rouge, and SporTran in Shreveport, with over 2 million annual boardings, according to the American Public Transportation Association.

Types of buses in Louisiana include metro buses, school buses, intercity and regional carriers (i.e., Greyhound, Megabus, etc.), passenger vans, shuttle buses, mini-buses, party buses, sleeper motor coaches, and charter and tour buses. 

Bus Accident Injuries

Some of the most common types of injuries in Louisiana bus accidents include:

· Traumatic Brain Injuries (TBIs)

· Broken bones

· Facial injuries

· Burn injuries

· Cuts and lacerations

· Internal injuries

· Head, neck, and spine injuries

· Psychological injuries

Whether you are a passenger on a bus, an occupant of another vehicle, or a motorcyclist, pedestrian, or bicyclist, a bus accident can leave you with severe injuries. 

Liable Parties In Louisiana Bus Accidents

Liability is a complex issue in bus accident claims. Like other automobile accidents, liability hinges on determining which party caused the accident. The following are among the common causes of bus accidents:

· Speeding

· Distracted driving

· Bus driver error

· Driving under the influence

· Poor driver training

· Driver fatigue

· Poorly maintained buses

· Violation of bus regulations

If you get into an accident with a school bus, there are a variety of people and entities who may be liable for your accident. Those people and entities may include the bus driver, school bus driver’s employer, bus manufacturer, or third-party contractor responsible for supplying parts or hiring bus drivers. 

Parties responsible for your charter or tour bus accidents include a bus driver. This bus company owns the vehicle, a tour company in contract with a bus company to transport passengers, a guide for providing incorrect instructions to passengers or encouraging unsafe behavior, bus manufacturer for a defect in the bus’s design or a faulty part, third-party maintenance or repair company which failed to perform necessary repairs or maintenance, other driver/s or road users like motorcyclists, bicyclists, or pedestrians, and government entities, such as the city, or parish for failure to maintain roads or road safety. 

If you suffer injuries in an accident with a government-owned bus in Louisiana or a bus contracted by a Louisiana government agency, you have only a tiny window of time to file your personal injury claim. This time may be as little as sixty days. Louisiana has set a cap on monetary damages recoverable from government entities. The limit is $500,000 under Louisiana law. 

Louisiana law requires you to provide the government entity or operator with written notice of your intent to bring a claim. 

Contact a Louisiana personal injury lawyer for guidance If you need clarification on when, where, or how to file a notice of claim. 

Bart Bernard Injury Lawyers: Louisiana Lawyers Who Ensure That The Damages You Receive Are Equitable And Honorable Rather Than Subpar

When a bus hits a pedestrian, bicyclist, stationary object, or moving vehicle, the resulting damages are often catastrophic. Thankfully, victims of bus accidents who sustain serious injuries are sometimes entitled to compensation for their losses.

At Bart Bernard Injury Lawyers, our Louisiana bus accident lawyers will review the intricacies of the parties’ insurance policies, accurately account for the victim’s damages, and handle all communication with the insurance companies. The lawyers at our Louisiana personal injury law firm draft and send demand letters that outline any damages suffered, including medical expenses, lost wages, property damage, and pain and suffering.

Our lawyers will try to negotiate a settlement that is fair and just and covers the victim’s damages.

Louisiana personal injury lawyer Bart Bernard possesses over twenty-five years of extensive experience dealing with insurance adjusters. He is a skilled negotiator who uses his thorough knowledge of personal injury laws to advocate for clients’ best interests. If a bus accident case goes to trial, he has the invaluable courtroom experience and skills to present a winning case. He is known to be persuasive, assertive, and capable of compelling arguments. 

At Bart Bernard Injury Lawyers, our Louisiana bus accident attorneys are waiting, ready to help with your bus accident claim in Louisiana. Contact us today for a no-cost, no-obligation review of your case.