National Transportation Safety Board

Motorcoach Run-off-the-bridge and Rollover, Sherman, Texas, August 8, 2008: Highway Accident Report Ntsb / Har-09/02 National Transportation Safety Board

Publisher Marketing: About 12:45 a.m. on August 8, 2008, a 56-passenger motorcoach was northbound on U. S. Highway 75 when it was involved in a single-vehicle accident in Sherman, Texas. The motorcoach was traveling in the right lane of the four-lane divided highway. As the motorcoach approached the Post Oak Creek near Sherman, its right steer axle tire failed. The motorcoach departed the roadway, overrode a 7-inch-high, 18-inch-wide concrete curb, and struck the metal bridge railing. After riding against the bridge railing for about 120 feet, the motorcoach went through the railing and off the bridge. It fell about 8 feet and slid on its right side before coming to rest on the inclined earthen bridge abutment adjacent to the creek. The major safety issues identified in the accident investigation included the need for tire pressure monitoring systems on commercial vehicles; the need for criteria for the selection of bridge railing designs; the lack of oversight of the Federal commercial vehicle inspections delegated to the states; the lack of motorcoach occupant protection systems; and the deficiencies in Federal safety oversight of new entrant motor carriers. As a result of its investigation, the NTSB makes recommendations to the Federal Highway Administration, the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA), the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials, the American Association of Motor Vehicle Administrators, and Motor Coach Industries, Inc. The NTSB also reiterates previous recommendations to the FMCSA and NHTSA.