Feds Order Discount Bus Service In Chinatown To Cease Operations
NEW YORK (CBSNewYork) -- A discount bus service from Chinatown to Boston has been shut down by the federal government.
The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration has ordered carrier Lucky River Transportation Corporation, which runs as Lucky Star, to immediately cease all operations because it says it poses an imminent hazard to public safety.
EXTRA: Read The Full Imminent Hazard Out-Of-Service Order
The investigation "uncovered egregious regulatory violations demonstrating Lucky Star's flagrant disregard for motor coach passenger safety," the imminent hazard out-of-service order said, adding that the company failed to properly inspect, repair or maintain its buses.
Between May 5, 2012 and May 22, 2013, Lucky Star's motor coaches broke down on 80 separate occasions between New York City and Boston, forcing passengers "to disembark along the highway and at unscheduled stop areas," officials said.
One another occasion, Lucky Star "dispatched a motor coach that had an approximate 4 foot by 2 foot hole in the bottom of the motor coach and significant frame damage," the order said.
Investigators also found that the owners failed to monitor and ensure that its drivers complied with controlled substance and testing regulations, officials said.
"There is no higher priority than safety," said U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood. "Bus and truck companies must comply with federal safety regulations, which protect every traveler on our highways and roads. Companies that disregard the safety rules will not be allowed to operate."
In March, the feds ordered the Fung Wah bus company, that also ran between New York and Boston, to cease operations due to multiple safety issues.
Last year, federal officials shut down 26 bus services that transported more than 1,800 passengers a day along Interstate 95 from New York to Florida for safety violations.
Most of the 233 bus routes serviced by the companies either left from or ended in Chinatown.
Those shutdowns were the result of a year-long investigation.
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