About 7:25 a.m., central standard time, on November 16, 1980, an intercity-type bus was traveling south on U.S. Route 183, a two-lane rural highway in south-central Texas. It was raining and the pavement was wet. As the bus approached and attempted to negotiate a curve to the left, the rear tires of the bus lost traction. The bus skidded across the opposing traffic lane and onto the shoulder before it could be steered back onto the highway. As it crossed the highway again, the bus spun 180 degrees and slid into a drainage ditch where it struck the side of the ditch and overturned onto its left side. Two passengers were killed, and the busdriver and 35 passengers were injured. The National Transportation Safety Board determined that the probable cause of the accident was the low wet cornering capability of the marginal yet 'legal' rear bus tires and the low frictional quality of the wet pavement, which combined to produce loss of rear tire traction and vehicle control as the bus was being operated at or near the posted 55 mph speed limit.
Highway Accident Report: East Side Church of Christ Bus Skid and Overturn U.S. Route 183, Near Luling, Texas, November 16, 1980
1981
42 pages
Report
No indication
English