Boston Car Accident Lawyer Blog

On Monday evening around 6pm, a plow driver in Plympton, Massachusetts reportedly hit a 47-year-old woman and drove off. The pedestrian accident victim was apparently walking in the street when she was hit. The plow was not plowing snow at the time of the accident.

Police say they are searching for a small SUV with a plow attached to the front. Officials at Brigham and Women's Hospital in Boston report that the woman who survived the hit and run is in fair condition.

Because pedestrians have no protection against vehicles like cars, trucks, or SUVs, they are extremely vulnerable to injury if they are involved in an accident. Potential injuries include broken bones, brain injuries, internal bleeding, and sometimes death.

Source: MA police search for plow driver who allegedly hit woman and drove off, NECN.com, December 22, 2009

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A bus crash last week near Boston's Copley Place injured a 54-year-old pedestrian. According to a press release issued by the Suffolk district attorney's office, the MBTA bus accident occurred just after midnight near the intersection of Ring Road and Huntington Avenue.

The Route 9 bus was headed west on Huntington Avenue and did not have any passengers at the time of the bus crash. As of Friday, the pedestrian was still in the intensive care unit at Boston Medical Center.

The bus driver will be tested for drug or alcohol impairment in accordance with the MBTA's standard policy, but investigators say he did not show any signs of impairment following the collision.

Source: Pedestrian critical after MBTA bus collision in Back Bay, Boston Globe, December 11, 2009

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In Massachusetts, a Pioneer Valley Transit Authority bus hit a pedestrian who was attempting to cross the street a few weeks ago. Police report that the bus accident victim was transported to the hospital with minor injuries. The accident occurred just after 7am at the intersection of Main and Liberty Street in Springfield.

According to witnesses, the man was struck by the eastbound bus when he crossed the street against a green light. The names of the victim and the bus driver have not been released to the media.

While fortunately this bus accident resulted in minor injuries to the pedestrian, other motor vehicle accidents can result in more serious injuries such as broken bones, spinal cord injuries, and sometimes even death.

Sources: PVTA bus strikes pedestrian in Springfield, WGGB.com, November 20, 2009

Pedestrian, struck by bus in downtown Springfield, taken to hospital, MassLive.com, November 20, 2009

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A Boston pedestrian was killed on Friday afternoon near his home in the Back Bay. Police say the 84-year-old man stepped out into traffic to cross the street when he was hit by a 22-year-old bicyclist from Randolph.

The bicyclist was traveling northbound on Massachusetts Avenue when he collided with the pedestrian, who fell to the ground and hit his head. The pedestrian died later that night at Boston Medical Center.

According to a Boston police spokesman, the bicyclist stayed at the scene of the pedestrian accident and will probably not be charged because the pedestrian had stepped into traffic. There was no crosswalk.

Pedestrian, 84, dies after being hit by bicyclist, Boston Globe, November 16, 2009

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On Monday evening, a freshman at the University of Massachusetts was injured after being hit by a vehicle and landing on the vehicle's hood. The 18-year-old student was crossing Commonwealth Avenue around 6:22pm when she was hit by a southbound vehicle driven by an 18-year-old New Bedford woman.

The injured pedestrian was transported in an Amherst Fire Department ambulance to Cooley Dickinson Hospital in Northampton and treated for non-life-threatening injuries. A spokeswoman for the hospital said she has already been released from the hospital.

Charges have not been filed in the pedestrian accident, which remains under investigation. Commonwealth Avenue has been the site of several previous pedestrian accidents, including a 1999 incident where a student killed crossing the street. In light of these accidents, officials from University of Massachusetts and Amherst police are working together to raise awareness about safety in crosswalks.

UMass student injured when struck by vehicle in risky campus crosswalk, GazetteNet.com, November 4, 2009

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Last week, a motor vehicle accident on Route 28 North in Medford injured a pedestrian, who later died at the hospital. According to state police reports, the pedestrian was hit by a 2003 BMW X5 in the right lane. The 33-year-old driver was not injured.

The pedestrian, a 53-year-old man from Medford, was transported to Massachusetts General Hospital and died at the hospital. Medford's Deputy Fire Chief said that stretch of roadway is particularly prone to accidents, although they usually do not involve pedestrians.

Police closed Route 28 for three hours following the motor vehicle crash so they could investigate and reconstruct the accident. It is clear if the driver will face any charges.

Pedestrian killed on Fellsway in Medford, Boston Globe, October 9, 2009

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According to a recent study, hybrid cars are a greater risk to pedestrians than vehicles with internal combustion engines because of their quieter engines. Blind pedestrians are especially at risk, because they rely more heavily on auditory cues. In fact, a blind woman in Kansas City last year had her cane run over and broken by what she suspects was a hybrid vehicle.

Because of this heightened risk of a pedestrian accident, automakers are exploring ways to create noise and warn pedestrians, especially when a vehicle is driving under 10 miles per hour, when tires on pavement and other road noises are barely audible.

Congress also passed the Pedestrian Safety Enhancement Act, which ordered a federal agency to examine the issue and potentially recommend a minimum amount of sound. Already, American drivers kill approximately 4,500 pedestrian and injure 70,000 others each year. And as hybrid cars gain in popularity, the issue of safety becomes even more important.

Safety experts fear electric cars too quiet, KansasCity.com, September 26, 2009

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On Monday, an 83-year-old Brockton resident was injured in a pedestrian accident on North Montello Street in Brockton. Adilino Monteiro reportedly suffered a head injury when he walked into the side of car traveling southbound.

According to police, Monteiro was crossing in a westerly direction when a northbound car stopped to let him cross. Then he walked into the front quarter panel and side mirror of a Chrysler.

He was taken to Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston for medical treatment. As of Wednesday, his condition had been upgraded from critical to fair, according to a hospital spokeswoman.

Police said there are no plans to file charges in this pedestrian accident.

Brockton man’s condition improving following Monday pedestrian accident, Enterprise News, June 25, 2009

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Last week, a 55-year-old pedestrian from Harwich was hit by a truck on Route 28 in West Yarmouth. David C. Nickerson is in critical condition at Massachusetts General Hospital after sustaining life-threatening injuries. Yarmouth Fire and Rescue took Nickerson by ambulance to the Dennis-Yarmouth Regional High School baseball fields, and he was flown by MedFlight helicopter to Mass General in Boston.

According to Yarmouth police, Jason Yanna, 23, was driving the white Chevrolet Silverado pickup truck that hit Nickerson. Police do not consider drugs or alcohol to be a factor in the accident. No charges have been filed against the driver, but the pedestrian accident is still under investigation.

Anyone who may have witnessed the crash or have knowledge of the operator or pedestrian's activities before the crash is urged to contact Patrol Investigator Gibbons at 508-775-0445 extension 3613.

Harwich man critical after Yarmouth accident, Cape Cod Times, April 1, 2009

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On Saturday, a car accident in Manchester seriously injured a 6-year old boy and resulted in non-life threatening injuries in his grandfather. The grandfather, 64-year old Kubirlal Adhikari, was pushing Maousham Adhikari in a toy vehicle as they crossed Conant Street. The boy suffered serious head injuries after he was hit by a Volkswagon near their Notre Dame Avenue home.

The younger Adhikari was taken to Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston, where he was listed in critical condition. However, his father said that the kindergartener’s condition was improving. The family are refugees from Bhutan, and although they admitted that Maosham’s injury has saddened them, it does not make them regret immigrating to the United States earlier this year.

Police have identified the driver of the Volkswagon as 19-year old Joshua Bouchard. They said speed and alcohol do not appear to be factors in this auto accident.

Boy, grandpa hurt in city crash, UnionLeader.com, December 6, 2008

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Earlier this week, a Suffolk Superior Court jury reached its verdict in a civil suit involving a Boston woman who was struck by an MBTA bus in 2005 and lost her right leg as a result of the bus accident. Rita Traybman, 61, was awarded at least $3.9 million in a judgment that her lawyer says could the largest of its kind in Massachusetts history.

According to an article in The Boston Globe, Traybman was crossing an intersection in Boston’s South End when an MBTA bus struck her from behind, causing massive injuries. MBTA policies and Massachusetts law state that, as a pedestrian, Traybman had the right of way and the driver should have stopped for her.

The bus driver was cited and fined for violating a pedestrian crosswalk. It is unclear whether he is still employed by the MBTA.

Traybman is a Ukrainian immigrant who became a US citizen. At the time of the bus accident, she was her mother’s caregiver. Now on lifelong disability, she is dependent on others for her care.

The MBTA said it is considering filing post-trial motions and possibly an appeal.

Jury awards woman hit by T bus $3.9m, Boston Globe, December 2, 2008

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As the result of a traffic accident earlier this year that injured a graduate student as she was trying to the cross the street, the University of Massachusetts is renewing its focus on pedestrian safety on campus. The ongoing efforts include adding new warnings for motorists and pedestrians on Massachusetts Avenue, which were implemented in November.

Work crews added “PED XING” lettering on the westbound side of Massachusetts Avenue and temporary grooved sections of pavement. These “rumble strips” are aimed at warning drivers as they cross the east and westbound lanes near crosswalks.

Also as a result of the pedestrian accident, the UMass Police Department has ramped up its educational efforts. They distributed door hangers and pamphlets throughout campus building to remind visitors and employees of pedestrian safety. Plainclothes officers are also enforcing traffic laws along Massachusetts Avenue and crossing guards have become a regular feature along that street.

"The sense of urgency was heightened by the accident, but the plans had been in the works for some time," said Jim Hunt from Facilities and Campus Planning.

Mass. Ave goes pedestrian-friendly, The Daily Collegian, November 26, 2008

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A Wareham, Massachusetts teen was struck by a train and seriously injured on Friday afternoon, according to police. The teen’s identify has not been released to the press, but police say he was walking along the railroad tracks near Main Avenue when a train operated by the Massachusetts Coastal Railroad came up behind him.

The train engineer blew the horn, and the Wareham teen did not react, because he was wearing headphones. The engineer used the emergency brakes and blasted the whistle, but the teen still did not respond. The train hit the teen in the back before the teen disappeared under the train. With only one foot of clearance between the bottom of the train and the ground, the boy stayed underneath the train as it passed over him.

Wareham police and rescue workers and the Onset Fire Department responded to the train accident at 4:20pm. The accident victim was still lying on the railroad tracks. He was treated at the scene of the railroad accident and taken to Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston. His condition was unknown and injuries were unspecified.

Teen struck by train in Wareham, Cape Cod Times, October 25, 2008

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In Dighton, Massachusetts, a Bristol County Agricultural High School student was hit by a car on Center Street around 9am last Friday morning. Dighton Police Sgt. Edward Dutra said the student, 15, was crossing Center Street on way to homeroom when the driver of a 2002 Plymouth Seabring hit her.

Fortunately, the student suffered no broken bones and remained conscious at the scene of the car accident. She was taken to Hasbro Children’s Hospital, but she is now resting at home. Dutra believes that the student’s backpack may have absorbed the impact of her fall and saved her from more serious injuries.

Because two bridges in the area are currently under construction, Center Street and the area surrounding the school has become more heavily trafficked. Dutra and the Massachusetts Reconstruction Unit are investigating the auto accident.

Aggie student hit by car, Taunton Daily Gazette, October 6, 2008

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