Mass transit companies owe all passengers a certain standard of care. Like other motorists, their drivers and operators must always conduct themselves in a way that keeps people reasonably safe. However, because the drivers are well-trained professionals, Georgia law holds them to a higher standard than other non-mass transit drivers. The law calls public transportation entities “common carriers” and says they must act as reasonably careful operators.
Those filing a lawsuit against a public transit entity such as MARTA need to prove that the entity or their employees acted negligently, and those actions caused the claimant’s injury. It can be easier to prove negligence in public transit cases in some circumstances since the law requires mass transit drivers to be incredibly attentive. However, this doesn’t mean that these claims are easy to settle and don’t need a skilled mass transit injury lawyer’s attention.
