At 3:24 p.m. on July 31, 1991, a 1989 72-passenger school bus operated by Mayflower Contract Services, Inc., was traveling eastbound on undivided, two-lane Tramway Road from the Palm Springs (California) Aerial Tramway parking lot. On board the bus were 45 girl scouts and 8 adult advisors. During the descent, the bus increased speed, left the road, plunged down an embankment, and collided with several large boulders. The busdriver and 6 passengers were killed; 47 passengers were injured. The National Transportation Safety Board determines the probable cause of this accident was the loss of speed control while descending Tramway Road because of the busdriver's use of improper driving techniques for mountainous terrain. Contributing to the accident were the out-of-adjustment brakes, which had not been detected in the Mayflower Contract Services, Inc., maintenance reporting and inspection procedures. The safety issues discussed in this report include the adequacy of: * busdriver training in mountain driving techniques and proper transmission operation in mountainous terrain, * motor carrier inspection and maintenance programs, * State regulations on school bus inspection and maintenance procedures, school bus occupant protection, and * traffic control devices on Tramway Road and traffic control standards applicable to private roads. As a result of its investigation, the Safety Board issued safety recommendations to the Federal Highway Administration, the State of California, the California Department of Education, the California Highway Patrol, the Mount San Jacinto Winter Park Authority, the National Committee on Uniform Traffic Laws and ordinances, the American Association of State Highway and Transportation officials, the National Association of State Directors of Pupil Transportation Services, the General Motors Corporation Allison Transmission Division, and Mayflower Contract Services, Inc. The ATSSA has recommended that the MUTCD general provisions state that uniform traffic control devices apply to private property where public travel is encouraged. This would include highways such as Tramway Road; however, it also would include all shopping centers, subdivision developments, and arenas, which appears to be a rather broad application. Some States have more narrowly defined the applicability of the MUTCD or their own manual to private facilities based on parking space numbers. This lacks uniformity from State to State. The National Safety Council publication Manual on Classification of Motor Vehicle Traffic Accidents has adopted the term, trafficway. This term includes public and private roads and more narrowly defines private roads. NHTSA defines the term as any road, street, or highway open to the public as a matter of right or custom for moving persons or property from one place to another. The Safety Board concludes that private roads open to the public are not subject to the same signing and traffic control standards as public roads. Therefore, the State of California should amend the California Vehicle Code to include the NHTSA definition of trafficway to ensure uniformity of traffic control devices on public and private roads and require that the California Traffic Manual sections regarding traffic control devices apply to trafficways. The Safety Board believes that the FHWA,, the National Committee on Uniform Traffic Laws and Ordinances, and AASHTO should adopt the NHTSA definition of trafficway to ensure uniformity of traffic control devices on public and private roads and that, where appropriate, the MUTCD or each State traffic manual applies to trafficways. (Author/publisher)
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