Lawsuit Filed Against CTA For Weekend Crash
CHICAGO (STMW) - A woman allegedly injured when a CTA bus crashed into a tree Saturday night on the South Side filed a lawsuit Tuesday against the CTA and the bus driver.
Yolanda Anderson claims she was injured Saturday when the CTA bus she was riding "abruptly veered to the right and jumped the curb on South Lake Shore Drive and slammed into a tree," according to a suit filed in Cook County Circuit Court.
Fire Media Affairs Director Larry Langford said the articulated No. 6 Jackson Park Express bus was traveling southbound when it crashed into a grassy area about 6 p.m. Saturday near the 2800 block of South Lake Shore Drive.
"The driver said the bus veered to the right," Rich Rodriguez, president of the CTA, said at the scene. "It appears that the trees were what stopped the bus from going any further."
CTA spokesman Noel Gaffney said the bus was full -- about 70 passengers -- but not "packed" because it can hold up to 110 passengers.
Initially, four people were taken in serious-to-critical condition to Northwestern Memorial Hospital and John H. Stroger Jr. Hospital of Cook County, while 10 people were taken in fair-to-serious condition to area hospitals, fire department officials said. Another 23 were hospitalized with minor injuries and 39 passengers refused treatment.
The driver was taken in good condition to Rush University Medical Center.
Anderson was returning from class at National Louis University when the crash happened, according to a statement from her lawyer.
The suit claims, among other things, the driver exceeded the speed limit and failed to decrease speed at an intersection. It also claims the driver was not adequately instructed and the CTA did not provide proper supervision.
The three-count suit is seeking more than $150,000 from the CTA and the bus driver, identified in the suit only as Jane Doe.
The CTA does not comment on pending litigation.
(Source: Sun-Times Media Wire © Chicago Sun-Times 2010. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.)
