Troubled San Francisco Tour Bus Company Given 'Unsatisfactory' Grade By CHP
SAN FRANCISCO (CBS SF) – A tour bus company involved in an injury accident last November has received an "unsatisfactory" grade on its latest CHP inspection report.
The April 11th report on City Sightseeing obtained by KPIX 5 reveals that CHP inspectors found that daily vehicle reports did not match to the actual condition of the buses, that one driver had an expired license while another was not enrolled in a mandatory drug and alcohol program.
Inspectors also found that a 2000 Orion bus nearly identical to the one that crashed was cited for a brake hose that was chafed and kinking.
The CHP has given the company 120 days to fix the issues or face having its license pulled.
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In November, a City Sightseeing bus careened out of control down Post Street before eventually slamming into the construction site of the Apple store at the corner of Post and Stockton injuring people on the bus – as well as in nearby cars which the driver says he hit to slow down the bus.
"When you make findings like this it does show a pattern for this company that would indicate that these brake lines are corroded, the compressors are leaking, there is leaks in the brake lines, the same kinds of things that we claim occurred in this accident," said Robert Cartwright, the attorney for Kenneth Malvar, the driver in November's crash.
Cartwright filed a $5 million claim against the City of San Francisco on behalf of Malvar. The claim alleges that the city failed to inspect the bus prior to the crash, destroyed evidence and defamed Malvar's character.
"They can't find the mechanical failure and maybe they're embarrassed, so the easiest thing to do is blame the driver and it's really wrong," Cartwright told KPIX5.
In a March news conference, SFPD blamed the crash on operator error, saying Malvar mixed up the gas and brake pedals -- and that the crash was not due to mechanical failure.
"We have stated since the beginning that there was a mechanical failure here, that the accelerator was stuck wide open and that the brakes were not operative. We think the reports that came out today on the most recent inspection support that story," Cartwright told KPIX5.
KPIX5 reached out to City Sightseeing for comment, but has not heard back.