Limo group takes advice
Association tells transport board it has asked members to follow safety guidance
So far, only the National Limousine Association has responded to the National Transportation Safety Board’s call for new limo safety recommendations issued in November in response to the limo crash in Schoharie that killed 20 people in October 2018.
That means neither the federal government nor the state of New York — which was heavily criticized by the NTSB in September — have stepped forward with plans to implement the recommendations, which include addressing loopholes that the NTSB said led to the disaster.
In November, the NTSB wrote letters to the National Limousine Association, the Federal Highway Safety Administration and the state supporting tightened safety protocols, which the NTSB said might prevent similar crashes in the future.
So far, only the National Limousine Association has responded.
The limo association, which was not directly criticized in the NTSB’S final report on the crash, was asked to tell its members that they should verify the safety of the stretch limousines they own and make sure they pass safety and mechanical inspections. The NTSB also insisted association members check to ensure their stretch limos have a federal motor vehicle safety standards certification
label affixed that ensures the company that modified, or stretched, the limo, did so in accordance with federal requirements.
The limo involved in the Schoharie crash, a 31-foot stretch Ford Excursion owned by Prestige Limousine of Wilton, had none of those safety features in place at the time of the wreck, when the vehicle barreled down a steep section of Route 30 before crashing.
The limo crashed into the parking lot of the Apple Barrel Country Store going over 100 mph, killing two bystanders before it slammed into a ditch. All 17 passengers, on their way to a birthday party in Cooperstown, died, along with the driver, who was the only person wearing a seatbelt.
The limo had failed two state Department of Transportation inspections in the months before the crash, and its owners had repeatedly failed to get it properly inspected by the DOT. It also lacked the required federal safety certification label.
“The NTSB is vitally interested in these recommendations because they are designed to prevent accidents and save lives,” the NTSB wrote in a letter to the limo association on Nov. 5. The NTSB gave the association 90 days to respond.
National Limousine Association President Robert Alexander, responding on Dec. 17 to the NTSB, said the organization was urging limo owners and drivers to ensure that their vehicles have the proper safety certifications and inspections done before driving guests.
The state and federal government have yet to respond; they have until early next month to do so.
The state DOT and DMV were criticized in the NTSB report for not doing enough to stop Prestige Limousine and its operator, Nauman Hussain, from operating the business with unsafe vehicles. He is facing charges of manslaughter and criminally negligent homicide in Schoharie County Court over the crash. He has pleaded not guilty. His trial has been postponed due to the pandemic.
The state has said it will respond as soon as it can to the NTSB recommendations, which are not binding.