Bus in fatal N.J. crash ‘inched past’ stop sign, NTSB says
The agency’s ongoing investigation into the Feb. 16 accident involving a school bus and a dump truck reveals that the bus reportedly went past the stop sign because of bad sight lines. Investigators have found that at some locations at the intersection where the crash occurred, the line of sight was obstructed due to “environmental features,” and NTSB’s chief investigator says that possible improvements are being studied.
CHESTERFIELD TOWNSHIP, N.J. — The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) said on Friday that its ongoing investigation into the fatal Feb. 16 crash involving a school bus and a dump truck at an intersection has revealed that the bus “inched past a stop sign because of bad sight lines,” The Inquirer reports.
As SBFrecently reported, the school bus was transporting 25 students to an elementary school when the dump truck struck the driver’s side rear of the bus at an intersection. The impact of the crash caused the bus to strike a pole.
One student was killed in the accident, and numerous others sustained injuries.
NTSB chief investigator Peter Kotowski said that the school bus driver stated to investigators that he never saw the truck approaching the intersection, and that investigators found that "at some locations, the line of sight was obstructed due to environmental features of the intersection," according to The Inquirer.
The obstructions were not specified, but investigators have reportedly observed other drivers going past stop signs to see clearly. Kotowski noted that possible improvements — such as additional warning signs — were being studied.
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