Quinn Calls For Federal Investigation Into Megabus
SPRINGFIELD, Ill. (CBS) -- Gov. Pat Quinn is calling for a federal investigation of Chicago-based Megabus.
As WBBM Newsradio's John Waelti reports, Quinn's request comes on the heels of two fatal accidents in Illinois in less than a week involving Megabus.
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Aditi R. Avhad, 25, a dentist from India, was killed in the crash. Dozens of other passengers were hurt.
The scene is just two blocks from the site where Megabus fatally struck 76-year-old Wes Krueger in 2010, resulting in the company's agreement Wednesday to pay $5.1 million to settle a wrongful death lawsuit while admitting no wrongdoing.
There were other incidents involving Megabus in recent days. On Wednesday, a Megabus caught fire after blowing a tire on I-85 in Georgia, while traveling from Atlanta to Charlotte, N.C. All of the passengers and the driver were evacuated safely.
Megabus president Dale Moser says the company is deeply saddened by the deaths, but says the accidents were unrelated.
But Quinn has sent a letter to the U.S. Department of Transportation asking for a full investigation of whether the company is following proper procedures.
Meanwhile, Ald. Robert Fioretti (2nd), who called victim Halstead a personal friend, is asking the Chicago Department of Transportation to take a closer look at Megabus operations and make sure they're complying with all state and local laws.
"I'm always concerned with discount prices and what they mean for the service to the individual," he said. "We have to make sure that the passenger safety is utmost of concern of anybody. Since they're in, and they use the streets of the city of Chicago … we've got to make sure it's a safe bus, it's a safe entity, it's a safe transportation."
