Bus Accident Lawyer in Rosedale, Queens

Rosedale is a bus neighborhood. MTA buses carry riders up Merrick, Francis Lewis, and Brookville Boulevards toward Jamaica and the subway. Nassau Inter-County Express (NICE) buses cross the city line on their way to and from Valley Stream and the South Shore. School buses fill the residential streets every morning and afternoon. Our office sits in Rosedale, at 1 Cross Island Plaza, and we see the same buses you do. When one of them is involved in an injury, the claim depends on three things: where you were, which bus it was, and how fast you act. This page walks through each.

Stop 1: Injured on the bus

Passengers are most often hurt when a bus stops short, swerves, or pulls away before they are seated or holding on; when doors close on them; when they fall on wet or crowded floors; or when the bus collides with another vehicle. New York law holds bus operators to a duty of reasonable care toward passengers. For sudden-stop falls, New York courts generally require proof that the stop or movement was unusual and violent, not just the ordinary jerks of city bus travel. That proof comes from witnesses, the bus’s interior cameras, and the force of what happened, such as passengers being thrown or items flying.

Older riders are especially vulnerable to falls on moving buses, and the resulting hip and wrist fractures can be life-changing. If you or a parent fell on a bus, write down the time, route, bus number, and direction, and get medical care right away.

Stop 2: Injured at the bus stop

Bus stops are where riders and traffic meet. People are hurt stepping off onto a broken curb or into a hole, by buses that pull in too close to the curb or that pull away while someone is still exiting, by other vehicles passing a stopped bus, and by falls on ice at shelters that were not cleared. Responsibility can rest with the bus operator, a driver who hit the pedestrian, the City for a sidewalk or curb defect, or an adjacent property owner, depending on exactly where and how it happened.

Stop 3: Hit by a bus on the street

Pedestrians and cyclists struck by buses suffer some of the worst injuries we see. Buses make wide turns at intersections like Merrick Boulevard and 243rd Street or Francis Lewis Boulevard and Sunrise Highway, have large blind spots, and pull in and out of stops across bike lanes and crosswalks. Drivers in cars are hit by buses too, especially during lane changes and turns. Bus operators must use due care to avoid pedestrians and cyclists under VTL § 1146. Under CPLR 1411, shared fault reduces but does not bar recovery.

Which bus? MTA, NICE, or school bus

Bus	Who you claim against	What to know
MTA local or express bus	MTA New York City Transit or MTA Bus Company	Public authorities: a notice of claim is generally required within 90 days, and a lawsuit within one year and 90 days
NICE bus	The private operator, and possibly Nassau County	Mixed public and private roles; if a public entity may be involved, its notice deadline must be met
School bus	Usually a private bus contractor, and possibly a city agency	Contractors carry commercial insurance; children’s claims have extended time limits, but public notice deadlines still apply
Private shuttles, charters, and dollar vans	The owner and operator	Commercial or, for unlicensed vans, possibly no insurance; act quickly on uninsured coverage

Because Rosedale sits on the city line, a crash a few blocks east can involve Nassau County rules and courts, while a crash on the Queens side generally involves New York City authorities and Queens County courts. We sort out which applies at the very first meeting.

The 90-day rule

Most MTA bus claims require a written notice of claim within 90 days of the accident, under General Municipal Law § 50-e as applied by the public authorities law. The notice must describe when, where, and how the accident happened and the injuries claimed. After it is filed, the authority may require a sworn 50-h examination and a physical exam. Missing the 90-day deadline is the most common way strong bus cases are lost. A court can sometimes permit a late notice, but it is never guaranteed. Our guide to claims against the city and public authorities covers the details.

Paying medical bills after a bus accident

No-fault coverage works differently for bus passengers than for people riding in cars, because buses are treated differently under New York’s no-fault law. Depending on your situation, benefits may come from your own or a household member’s auto policy, or another source, and your health insurance may also be involved. Pedestrians and drivers hit by a bus follow their own no-fault rules. Getting this right early keeps bills from going to collections while your case proceeds.

What to do after a bus accident in Rosedale

Tell the bus operator you were hurt before leaving the bus, if you can.
Get medical care right away and describe exactly how it happened.
Write down the bus number, route, direction, time, and location.
Get names and phone numbers of other passengers and witnesses.
Photograph your injuries, the bus, and the stop or street.
Do not sign forms or give statements to the transit authority’s claims office without advice.
Call a lawyer right away because of the 90-day deadline.

Evidence in bus cases

Bus video: many buses have interior and exterior cameras. Preservation requests must go out quickly.
Operator reports and dispatch records, including any incident report made at the time.
Maintenance records for brakes, doors, and kneeling mechanisms.
Witnesses, especially other passengers.
Weather records for falls on ice at stops.
Prompt medical records linking the injury to the accident.

Injuries and compensation

Bus accidents cause fractures, head injuries, spinal injuries, shoulder and knee tears, and, for pedestrians and cyclists, catastrophic trauma. A claim can include medical expenses, lost earnings, future care, pain and suffering, and loss of enjoyment of life. Families of those killed may bring wrongful death claims.

How a Rosedale bus case moves

We meet you, calendar the notice deadline, and identify the operator and any public entity involved. We file the notice of claim, send preservation requests for video and records, and prepare you for the 50-h examination. While you treat, we document your injuries and losses. If the claim is not resolved fairly, we file suit in the right court, generally Queens County Supreme Court for crashes on the Queens side, and prepare the case for trial.

Mistakes that cost bus accident victims

Assuming the MTA will contact you, or that there is plenty of time.
Leaving the bus without telling the operator or noting the bus number.
Giving a statement to the authority’s claims office without preparation.
Gaps in medical treatment, which insurers use to argue the injury was minor.

Your neighborhood bus accident lawyers

Yakov Mushiyev & Associates is right here in Rosedale, at 1 Cross Island Plaza, Suite 325. Attorney Yakov Mushiyev grew up in Queens, has practiced personal injury law in New York since 2014, and works directly with clients in English, Russian, Bukhori, and Hebrew. Being local means we can visit the stop, find the cameras, and talk to witnesses quickly.

See our bus accident practice, our Queens bus accident guide, our article on MTA and NICE bus claims, and our other Rosedale pages on taxi accidents and construction accidents. Review our past results; prior results do not guarantee a similar outcome.