Jitney Crackdown; Safety Inspectors Pull 11 Minibuses Out of Service

By DAVID A. MICHAELS, STAFF WRITER

Surprise safety inspections Monday of the minibuses used by thousands of North Jersey commuters took 11 vehicles out of service for violations and caused other drivers to stay home, transportation officials said.

State and local officials said the exercise, conducted in Paterson, was necessary to ensure the safety of passengers. But drivers said the operation was a public relations nightmare that might scare off some customers.

"The customers, they are going to believe we are completely illegal," said Norberto Curitomai, the president of Spanish Transportation, the largest operator of private buses in Paterson. "But none of my buses had big issues."

State investigators pulled over 28 buses belonging to several companies. The out-of-service infractions included worn and defective tires, inoperable emergency exits and driver’s license violations, said George Spencer, a principal investigator for the New Jersey Motor Vehicle Commission’s commercial bus inspection unit. One driver had a suspended license, Spencer said.

Curitomai said authorities inspected 18 buses that work for his company, and three of those vehicles were taken out of service one for a worn tire and two for fluid leaks. Those figures could not be confirmed because state officials did not release a list of companies and specific violations.

Minibuses have gained customers as more suburban commuters discover their frequent service and lower fares. By some estimates, the minibuses now carry more passengers between Paterson and New York than NJ Transit. The buses serve stops in Clifton, Fair Lawn, Fort Lee, Hackensack, Leonia, Paramus, Passaic, Teaneck and Union City.

But some police departments insist there are too many private buses on the streets and that fierce competition for fares has pushed some drivers to flout traffic laws. Minibuses sometimes block bus stops that are used by NJ Transit, police said.

"It’s been a hotbed of complaints over the years," said Lt. Anthony Traina, a spokesman for the Paterson Police Department. "With them blocking traffic and buses just all over the place, people can’t get through."

Investigators said several buses used Chinese-made tires that were subject to a federal recall. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration said last month that some of the tires imported by Foreign Tire Sales of Union are missing a safety feature that prevents tread separation.

Investigators described many of the violations as troubling.

"If one of these [buses] fail, it’s likely to run into something else, whether a passenger or a pedestrian," Spencer said.

Fares refunded

Drivers complained that they were singled out for public inspections that are not applied to NJ Transit. They said police officers made their passengers exit during the morning’s rainy weather and told the drivers to refund their fares.

"What they are doing is inconveniencing the public," said Jerry A. Casser, a Livingston attorney who counsels many private bus companies. "And they are not doing it in an evenhanded manner, because they are not pulling the NJ Transit buses out of service."

Jihad Wahdau, a driver for Spanish Transportation, said police officers followed him to a gas station and demanded that he follow them to be inspected. His bus was later towed for what officials told him was a fuel leak. He must pay to have his bus released from an impound lot, he said.

"Why not just call my company and take the bus to my garage?" he said. "It’s not just."

Curitomai, the president of Spanish Transportation, said his service was reduced on Monday because many of his owner-operators heard about the inspections and decided to skip work.

"Ninety percent of the drivers said they would not go to work because they thought they would be stopped and would not be able to work," he said. "They are independent contractors and I cannot force them."

But state officials, who have conducted similar inspections in Hudson County, said some owner-operators were to blame. The drivers should have reported to their garage for routine maintenance that would keep their vehicles in service, said Aage Ulland, a principal investigator for the MVC.

"That is a big problem," Ulland said.

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E-mail: michaels@northjersey.com

(c) 2007 Record, The; Bergen County, N.J.. Provided by ProQuest Information and Learning. All rights Reserved.