DC: Metrobus drivers caught speeding, running red lights and ignoring stop signs

[marmar]

(WaPo) Metrobus operators racked up nearly 2,300 traffic-camera tickets in the past six years, including 339 last year, according to records obtained through a public-information request. And although the annual number of citations has generally decreased since 2010, records show an uptick in 2015 — particularly in speeding violations.

Traffic cameras across the Washington region recorded Metrobus drivers speeding 120 times last year, more than double the 57 times in 2014, according to Metro records.

In a region where automated traffic cameras issue hundreds of thousands of tickets to motorists and generate millions of dollars in revenue, it’s not surprising that vehicles transporting commuters get caught up in the mix. But in interviews, residents, community leaders and government officials say the bad behaviors of those at the forefront of the nation’s sixth-largest bus system are most disturbing and signal yet another of Metro’s safety shortcomings.

“Bus drivers should know not to run red lights and not to speed. It’s simple,” said D.C. Council member Mary M. Cheh (D-Ward 3), who chairs the council’s Committee on Transportation and the Environment. “They are driving big vehicles. They are carrying passengers. It is very, very dangerous.”

Other troubling statistics: Stop-sign violations skyrocketed from six in 2014 to 83 last year, coinciding with stepped-up automated enforcement in the District for vehicles rolling through stop signs near school zones. Red-light cameras led to 133 tickets to Metrobus drivers last year, down from 155 in 2014. ..............(more)

https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/trafficandcommuting/metrobus-drivers-caught-speeding-running-red-lights-and-ignoring-stop-signs/2016/04/26/fb67b6a8-089d-11e6-bdcb-0133da18418d_story.html

[1StrongBlackMan]

1. I find those numbers, unsurprising, given the number of bus on the road.

[LiberalArkie]

2. They probably have some kind of quota system of being penalized for being late.