More and more people are getting injured in train accidents involving light-rail trains in San Francisco, a trend that has seen a consistent increase over the last four years, federal officials say. According to an Associated Press news report, train accidents involving San Francisco Municipal Railway trains injured 21 passengers in 2003. By 2008, that number has grown to 70 passengers, according to statistics provided by the Federal Transit Administration. On July 18, 2009, 48 people were injured in a Muni train crash when a moving train collided with a parked train at a station. Federal investigators say after a preliminary investigation that the crash, which injured four people seriously, was most likely caused by driver error.

The train accident injury rate is comparable to that of Boston. However it is slightly higher compared to light-rail systems in San Diego, Dallas, St. Louis and Portland. The operator in last week's crash said he blacked out before the collision after shifting his train from automatic to manual control. An investigation by the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) has found no problems with the train's brakes or any other mechanical problems or issues with the signaling system that may have led to the accident.

Apparently the city's light-rail trains are supposed to be equipped with surveillance cameras that could have captured the driver's blackout. However, cameras were not installed in the trains that crashed.

The key issue in this case is why the driver of the moving train bypassed all safety systems. Why did he shift from automatic to manual control before he was supposed to do so? Apparently, the agency's policy forbids the switch to manual outside a station without authorization from someone in the central control unit. But the agency apparently condones the practice to keep trains running on time. It took an accident of this magnitude for the agency to require its operators to get authorization before switching to manual control.

My partner, Brian Chase, who was interviewed by the San Francisco Weekly on this subject, gave some valuable insight about how such a train accident case involving a public transportation agency may be viewed by a jury. Normally, he says, the problem in such cases is that jurors worry about their "tax dollars funding a verdict" -- understandably so. However, Brian says, based on his experience, "jurors are less concerned about that when you have a 'righteous case.' If the allegations of Muni management allowing safety violations in order to pad on-time performance is accurate, it will be devastating to the city."

I absolutely agree with Brian. This driver essentially bypassed a safety system. And apparently, it was acceptable for him to do that. In this case, the Muni seems to have given its approval for operators to bypass a certain safety procedure. Unfortunately, this has resulted in a horrific accident and numerous injuries.

If you have been injured in this train accident, please contact an experienced California personal injury lawyer who can advise you about your legal rights and options. My staff or I will be more than happy to assist you in any way possible.

Train Accident Injuries Increasing on San Francisco's Light Rail System is a post from: Personal Injury Attorney News Portal