The First Department, reversing Supreme Court, determined that defendants’ motion for summary judgment, based upon the emergency doctrine, should not have been granted in this “sudden stop” bus-passenger injury case. The defendants alleged that the bus driver reacted to an emergency when a car in front of the bus stopped suddenly. However, the emergency doctrine does not usually apply in this situation:
Defendants contend that the driver of the bus on which plaintiff was a passenger was not negligent in braking to a sudden, hard stop that allegedly caused plaintiff to be injured, but reacted reasonably to the sudden stop of a car in front of the bus. However, the emergency doctrine is typically not available to the rear driver in a rear-end collision, who is responsible for maintaining a safe distance … . The bus driver’s affidavit demonstrates that he was confronted with a “common traffic occurrence” when the vehicle in front of the bus stopped short … . A factfinder could reasonably conclude that the bus driver was negligent in failing to maintain a safe distance between the bus and the car in front of it (see Vehicle and Traffic Law § 1129[a]) and that his own conduct caused or contributed to the emergency situation … . Contrary to defendants’ contention, a violation of Vehicle and Traffic Law § 1129(a) may be found even where there was no collision … . Vanderhall v MTA Bus Co., 2018 NY Slip Op 02720, First Dept 4-19-18
NEGLIGENCE (BUS PASSENGER INJURY, EMERGENCY DOCTRINE DOES NOT USUALLY APPLY IN REAR-END COLLISION CASES, VEHICLE AND TRAFFIC LAW RE FOLLOWING TOO CLOSELY CAN BE VIOLATED EVEN WHEN THERE IS NO COLLISION, DEFENDANTS’ MOTION FOR SUMMARY JUDGMENT IN THIS SUDDEN-STOP BUS-PASSENGER INJURY CASE SHOULD NOT HAVE BEEN GRANTED (FIRST DEPT))/BUSES (BUS PASSENGER INJURY, EMERGENCY DOCTRINE DOES NOT USUALLY APPLY IN REAR-END COLLISION CASES, VEHICLE AND TRAFFIC LAW RE FOLLOWING TOO CLOSELY CAN BE VIOLATED EVEN WHEN THERE IS NO COLLISION, DEFENDANTS’ MOTION FOR SUMMARY JUDGMENT IN THIS SUDDEN-STOP BUS-PASSENGER INJURY CASE SHOULD NOT HAVE BEEN GRANTED (FIRST DEPT))/TRAFFIC ACCIDENTS (BUS, SUDDEN STOP, EMERGENCY DOCTRINE DOES NOT USUALLY APPLY IN REAR-END COLLISION CASES, VEHICLE AND TRAFFIC LAW RE FOLLOWING TOO CLOSELY CAN BE VIOLATED EVEN WHEN THERE IS NO COLLISION, DEFENDANTS’ MOTION FOR SUMMARY JUDGMENT IN THIS SUDDEN-STOP BUS-PASSENGER INJURY CASE SHOULD NOT HAVE BEEN GRANTED (FIRST DEPT))/EMERGENCY DOCTRINE (TRAFFIC ACCIDENTS, BUSES, SUDDEN STOP, BUS PASSENGER INJURY, EMERGENCY DOCTRINE DOES NOT USUALLY APPLY IN REAR-END COLLISION CASES, VEHICLE AND TRAFFIC LAW RE FOLLOWING TOO CLOSELY CAN BE VIOLATED EVEN WHEN THERE IS NO COLLISION, DEFENDANTS’ MOTION FOR SUMMARY JUDGMENT IN THIS SUDDEN-STOP BUS-PASSENGER INJURY CASE SHOULD NOT HAVE BEEN GRANTED (FIRST DEPT))/VEHICLE AND TRAFFIC LAW (BUSES, SUDDEN STOP, (BUS PASSENGER INJURY, EMERGENCY DOCTRINE DOES NOT USUALLY APPLY IN REAR-END COLLISION CASES, VEHICLE AND TRAFFIC LAW RE FOLLOWING TOO CLOSELY CAN BE VIOLATED EVEN WHEN THERE IS NO COLLISION, DEFENDANTS’ MOTION FOR SUMMARY JUDGMENT IN THIS SUDDEN-STOP BUS-PASSENGER INJURY CASE SHOULD NOT HAVE BEEN GRANTED (FIRST DEPT)}/REAR-END COLLISIONS BUSES, SUDDEN STOP, (BUS PASSENGER INJURY, EMERGENCY DOCTRINE DOES NOT USUALLY APPLY IN REAR-END COLLISION CASES, VEHICLE AND TRAFFIC LAW RE FOLLOWING TOO CLOSELY CAN BE VIOLATED EVEN WHEN THERE IS NO COLLISION, DEFENDANTS’ MOTION FOR SUMMARY JUDGMENT IN THIS SUDDEN-STOP BUS-PASSENGER INJURY CASE SHOULD NOT HAVE BEEN GRANTED (FIRST DEPT))