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If you are in downtown Denver, you may see many city buses owned by the Regional Transportation District, or RTD. You might also use the RTD’s regional rail service to get to places such as the Denver Airport or Westminster.
While these public transportation services are generally safe, accidents do happen. If you or a loved one has been injured in an RTD accident, a personal injury lawyer in Denver can help you seek justice.
The Regional Transportation District is a large organization with over 100 bus routes and 10 rail lines. The RTD has an annual ridership of more than 64 million people on its commuter rail, light rail and buses as of 2023.
Accidents involving RTD vehicles can describe:
RTD vehicle accidents can result in serious injuries, such as broken bones, head and brain injuries, spinal cord injuries, and soft-tissue damage. In the most severe cases, RTD accidents can cause the deaths of one or more victims. In these cases, let a Denver wrongful death lawyer from Dormer Harpring handle your claim.
The RTD has a legal responsibility to ensure the reasonable safety of its passengers and the public as a whole. It must properly maintain all of its buses and trains and ensure its workers are qualified and adequately trained. If any of the RTD’s bus drivers or train operators are negligent – meaning they fail to act with reasonable care – serious accidents can occur.
If a bus driver is guilty of distracted driving, for example, this could cause a bus accident. Other examples of negligence include poor vehicle maintenance, low-quality repairs, insufficient bus or train inspections, vehicle defects, and dangerous road or rail conditions. Most of these RTD crash causes can be traced back to human error and are entirely avoidable.
The Regional Transportation District is a public agency. This means it is owned and managed by the government in Colorado. A doctrine known as governmental immunity protects government agencies from being held liable, or legally and financially responsible, in most personal injury cases.
However, there are some exceptions to this rule The Colorado Governmental Immunity Act allows the protections to be waived in certain circumstances, including in the operation of a motor vehicle. These exceptions allow most RTD accident victims in Denver to hold the government responsible for their losses.
Claims brought against the government for RTD accidents abide by a unique set of rules and regulations. You may need a lawyer’s assistance to properly file your notice and lawsuit. An experienced automobile accident attorney in Denver can help you navigate state laws to pursue fair compensation for your injuries and losses.
If you or a loved one was recently injured in a crash involving an RTD bus or train, contact the attorneys at Dormer Harpring to request a free case consultation in Denver. We have years of experience bringing claims against local and state governments. We can help you seek the financial compensation that you deserve.