After two serious MUNI accidents in the last month, the City Operations and Neighborhood Services Committee will hold a hearing examining MUNI safety standards for bus and train operators today.
The hearing will address the safety standards to which the operators are held, but it will also look into the extent of medical screening that happens for these operators. You may remember that the July 18th MUNI light rail collision was blamed on an operator’s medical condition that caused him to black out moments before the accident happened. If that is the case, then it was clearly not his fault, but more of an effor should be made to employ drivers who are not susceptible to blackouts, seizures, or any other medical condition that could cause them to lose control of the vehicle they are operating.
However, the more recent August 3rd incident that involved two street cars and an SUV was not blamed on any medical condition. How could it have been avoided, and what should MTA do to preevnt accidents in the future? Hopefully we’ll hear some positive news after the hearing today. I’ll keep you posted.
