There are many in city government who encourage people to use public transportation. While there are many valid reasons for this encouragement – saving fuel, cutting down on traffic congestion, minimizing the potential for rush hour accidents – there are trends playing out on Seattle’s buses that are unfortunately providing the ultimate discouragement to anyone who thinks of using them – a sharp rise in violence.
According to a report filed by the Seattle Post-Intelligencer:
“Reports show that incidents of violence or disturbances aboard Metro Transit buses are increasingly common, far outpacing increases in ridership, a seattlepi.com review has found.
Since 1998, the rate of assaults reported by Metro drivers has more than doubled, as has the total number of incidents reported annually. At the same time, Metro ridership numbers increased by 22 percent.
Assaults were reported on nearly every route, but 10 routes account for nearly half of all incidents reported in 2008. Leading the group were the No. 174, which connects downtown Seattle and Federal Way, and the No. 7, which serves the Rainier Valley. The two routes accounted for 102 incidents in 2008, nearly one-fifth of all reported.”
Officials note that in terms of statistical analysis, violent incidents remain exceedingly rare, and while that may be true, if people think it’s more likely than not that they could face a stressful situation on a city bus, it’s far less likely that people will use them regularly.
When incidents like these occur, the question of liability can be complicated. If you are assaulted on a bus, it could be the city that’s at fault and/or the perpetrator of the assault, depending on the factual circumstances. Regardless, if you or someone you love has been harmed on a city bus, contact the personal injury lawyers at Phillips & Webster today to schedule a free initial consultation.
Tacoma – A state trooper just happened to be following three girls in a 1992 Nissan on Interstate 5 at 9:15 am on Wednesday when the driver fell asleep. The vehicle veered into a tree, vaulted into the air, and slammed into an overpass column. The wreck was reported to have been captured on the troopers dashboard camera, but the footage has not yet been released.