For anyone who commutes for business or pleasure in the greater Philadelphia metro area, it’s well understood that the moving vehicles of the Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority (SEPTA) can present physical danger. When a person is injured or killed by the fault of the Authority, Philadelphia SEPTA accident lawyers need to step in to get proper compensation for the victims.

How serious and frequent are such accidents? As documented by the blog SEPTAwatch.com, accidents that involve the system happen with disturbing regularity. Some are the fault of SEPTA employees – engineers, drivers and system designers – and many are not. What’s particularly disturbing is when there are innocent victims, including:

• Cars traveling into trolley tunnels ­– While signs and barriers exist to prevent this from happening, the fact that it happens with some frequency suggests those measures are inadequate.
• Engineer negligence on Metrolink line – The September 2008 collision with a Union Pacific freight train (caused by an engineer allegedly sending text messages) resulted in 25 deaths.
• Three accidents in 24 hours ­ – Due to various and unresolved causes, May 22, 2012 was a particularly accident-prone day, involving passengers and motorists in other vehicles.

SEPTA isn’t alone in the accidents that occur. Motorists, pedestrians and passengers also become entangled with Amtrak trains – suffering significant injury in many cases. Philadelphia SEPTA accident attorneys work with victims of either system.

Just because a public transportation system serves a public need does not mean it shouldn’t be held accountable for negligence. When a serious accident causes disability, expense, loss of income or death, contact the lawyers at [ln::firm_name]. We have the skill and experience to handle auto and public transportation accidents. Based in Philadelphia, the firm also has offices in Media, Pennsylvania and Westmont, New Jersey.