STA Reopens Investigation into Double-Decker Bus Crash

0:00It's March 24th. From your city to your ears, this is Vancouver News Today, powered by AI. I'm Cory with the story. The Spokane Transit Authority is reopening its investigation into a January 18th double-decker bus crash in Spokane that injured seven people, and caused over $450,000 in damage. The crash happened when a 13.5-foot tall bus tried to pass under a 12-foot railroad viaduct on Cedar Street. Just three days after releasing what it called a final report on Friday, the agency made the decision to dig deeper. That initial report pointed to errors by the driver and a glitch in the onboard navigation software, which had routed the bus the wrong way, and affected multiple vehicles that day. Officials found no problems with training, policies, or procedures at the time. However, who remains on administrative leave knew about the navigation issue earlier in the shift, but did not report it right away, and also missed height warning signs.

1:00Now, a newly discovered call to dispatch on the day of the crash has prompted the change. Agency leaders learned about it on Monday and planned an independent review to check all the facts and what dispatch did with the warning. Double-decker buses return to service, February 21st, with new safety steps like extra-high training, disabled navigation systems for now, and stops before viaducts, as TA will share updates as the review continues.