If an MTA bus injured you in Queens, you do not have three years to act. You have 90 days to serve a notice of claim on the New York City Transit Authority, and one year and 90 days to file suit. Miss the 90-day window and your claim is usually over before a lawyer ever looks at it.
That deadline is the single most important fact on this page. Public Authorities Law §1212 sets it, and it applies to MTA buses, MTA Bus Company routes, and the subway.
The Injury Group handles bus and transit injury claims across Queens. Call 212-468-4878 for a free case review. We work on contingency, so you owe nothing unless we recover for you.
MTA Bus Collisions Are at a Record High
We pulled the MTA’s own safety reporting from the New York State open data portal, covering April 2019 through mid-2026, and the trend is not subtle.
| Year | Bus collisions per million miles | Collision injuries per million miles |
|---|---|---|
| 2020 | 40.70 | 4.47 |
| 2022 | 59.63 | 7.59 |
| 2024 | 60.47 | 7.78 |
| 2025 | 59.37 | 7.82 |
| 2026 (through June) | 64.93 | 7.77 |
Collision injuries per million miles are up 75% since 2020. The collision rate through the first half of 2026 is the highest in the reporting period. Customer accidents per million riders climbed from 1.84 in 2020 to 2.56 in 2024.
On the street side, NYPD crash data tells the same story locally. In 2024 there were 449 bus-involved collisions in Queens, injuring 213 people and killing 2. Queens ties the Bronx for second among the boroughs, behind Brooklyn’s 865.
These numbers matter to your case for a practical reason. When the Transit Authority argues an incident was a freak occurrence, its own published safety data is admissible evidence about the operating environment it created.
The 90-Day Notice of Claim
Suing a public authority works differently from suing a private driver, and the differences are procedural traps rather than questions of fault.
Notice of claim within 90 days. General Municipal Law §50-e requires a written notice of claim within 90 days after the claim arises. For the New York City Transit Authority, it is served on the Authority itself, not the City Comptroller. Serving the wrong entity is a common and often fatal error, because the MTA is a family of separate legal entities.
Suit within one year and 90 days. Public Authorities Law §1212(2) bars any tort action against the Authority commenced more than one year and 90 days after the event. That is materially shorter than the three years you would have against a private motorist.
The 50-h hearing. Under General Municipal Law §50-h, the Authority can demand a recorded examination under oath before you are allowed to sue, and it must serve that demand within 90 days of your notice of claim. If you fail to appear, your case can be dismissed. This is a sworn deposition conducted by defense counsel, usually before your treatment is finished, and the transcript is used against you at trial. Do not attend one without a lawyer.
Wrongful death claims run on a different clock, measured from the appointment of the estate’s representative.
If you are reading this near day 85, call now. A notice of claim can be prepared quickly, and late-notice applications are discretionary and frequently denied.
Which Entity Actually Operates Your Bus
Naming the wrong defendant wastes the deadline. Queens routes are run by several distinct operators.
- MTA New York City Transit runs most local Queens routes, the Q lines.
- MTA Bus Company operates many express routes and former private franchises, including QM express service to Manhattan.
- School buses are typically private contractors under contract to the NYC Department of Education, which means a different defendant and often a different deadline.
- Private charter, tour, and intercity carriers such as coach lines using Queens roads are ordinary private defendants with a three-year statute of limitations and no notice of claim.
- Access-A-Ride is operated by contractors on the MTA’s behalf, so both may be proper parties.
Photograph the bus number and route before you leave the scene. Fleet numbers are printed on the front, rear, and side, and they are the fastest way to identify the correct operator and pull the right vehicle’s maintenance and camera records.
What Standard of Care Applies
Many law firm pages still say a bus company owes passengers “the highest duty of care.” In New York that has been wrong since 1998.
In Bethel v. New York City Transit Authority, decided October 15, 1998, the Court of Appeals held that the rule of a common carrier’s duty of extraordinary care “is no longer viable” and realigned the standard with ordinary negligence: reasonable care under all the circumstances of the particular case.
This does not weaken your case. It means you win it with evidence, not with a favorable jury instruction. What a Queens bus case turns on is the record: the operator’s training and disciplinary history, the vehicle’s maintenance and brake records, the route’s incident history, and the onboard video.
Getting the Video Before It Is Gone
MTA buses carry multiple onboard cameras, and that footage is usually the difference between a disputed claim and a resolved one. It is also overwritten on a cycle measured in weeks.
Preserving it requires a spoliation letter sent to the correct entity, identifying the specific bus and run, early. This is the most time-sensitive piece of evidence in a transit case and the most common thing an unrepresented claimant loses. The same applies to the operator’s radio traffic, the incident report, and any nearby city or business surveillance.
We send preservation demands as a first step, before the notice of claim is even filed.
How People Get Hurt on Queens Buses
Sudden stops and starts. Standing passengers thrown down the aisle account for a large share of injuries. These are provable through onboard video and the operator’s own driving conduct, which carry far more weight than a passenger’s recollection alone.
Boarding and alighting. Doors closing on passengers, buses pulling away before a rider is seated, kneeling mechanisms that fail, and stops made far from the curb so riders step into traffic or a puddle-covered pothole.
Collisions with other vehicles. A bus striking or being struck by a car sends unbelted passengers into stanchions, seat backs, and the floor.
Pedestrians and cyclists. Buses have significant blind spots, and left turns across a crosswalk are a recurring fatal pattern. Our Queens pedestrian accident lawyers and bicycle accident attorneys handle those claims.
Slip and fall inside the bus. Wet floors on rainy days, broken seats, and missing grab rails.
Where a collision causes a head injury, our Queens brain injury lawyers take that portion of the case.
No-Fault Benefits Still Apply
New York No-Fault covers bus passengers. You can generally file for No-Fault benefits to cover medical bills and lost earnings regardless of who caused the crash, and doing so does not replace your claim against the Authority.
The No-Fault application has its own short deadline, commonly 30 days from the accident, which is even tighter than the notice of claim. To sue for pain and suffering on top of No-Fault benefits, you must meet the “serious injury” threshold under Insurance Law §5102(d). Fractures, significant disfigurement, and permanent consequential limitations qualify.
What to Do After a Queens Bus Accident
- Report it to the operator and ask that an incident report be made before you leave.
- Photograph the bus number, route number, and the interior including where you fell or struck something.
- Get medical attention the same day. A gap in treatment is the first thing defense counsel attacks.
- Collect witness names. Other passengers scatter at the next stop and are nearly impossible to find later.
- Do not give a recorded statement to a claims representative before speaking with a lawyer.
- Call a lawyer inside 90 days, ideally within days, so video can be preserved.
Why Queens Riders Call The Injury Group
Our managing attorney, Margarita Moshe, RPh., Esq., practiced as a pharmacist for 16 years before earning her law degree from Hofstra University’s Maurice A. Deane School of Law with a concentration in Health Law and Clinical Bioethics. In a case where the Authority disputes whether a crash caused your condition, she reads the medical record herself.
We take transit cases on contingency. No fee to talk to us, no retainer, and no bill unless we recover for you. We handle the notice of claim, the 50-h hearing, and the Authority’s lawyers.
We represent riders throughout Queens, including Astoria, Long Island City, Jackson Heights, Elmhurst, Corona, Forest Hills, Kew Gardens, Flushing, Bayside, Whitestone, Jamaica, Queens Village, Ozone Park, Richmond Hill, Rego Park, Woodside, Maspeth, Ridgewood, Rockaway Park, and Far Rockaway. Our Manhattan office is at 456 W 55th St., Suite 300, and our Long Island office at 269 Fulton Ave., Hempstead.
Frequently Asked Questions About Queens Bus Accident Claims
How long do I have to sue the MTA after a bus accident?
You must serve a notice of claim within 90 days of the accident under General Municipal Law §50-e, and commence the lawsuit within one year and 90 days under Public Authorities Law §1212(2). Both deadlines are much shorter than the three years you would have against a private driver.
What happens if I already missed the 90-day deadline?
You may be able to petition the court for permission to file a late notice of claim, and the court weighs factors such as whether the Authority already had actual knowledge of the facts and whether the delay prejudiced its defense. These applications are discretionary and often denied, so speak with a lawyer immediately rather than assuming either that it is hopeless or that it is automatic.
What is a 50-h hearing and do I have to attend?
It is a recorded examination under oath that the Authority can demand under General Municipal Law §50-h before you are permitted to sue. If a proper demand is served and you do not comply, your case can be dismissed. Defense counsel asks the questions, so do not attend without your own attorney.
Do I still have a case if the bus driver was not at fault?
Often yes. Another motorist may be liable, and the Authority can still be responsible for a defective door, a failed kneeling mechanism, poor maintenance, or an unsafe stop location. New York also applies pure comparative negligence, so partial fault reduces your recovery rather than barring it.
Does a bus company owe passengers the highest duty of care in New York?
No, not since 1998. In Bethel v. New York City Transit Authority the Court of Appeals held that the common carrier’s duty of extraordinary care is no longer viable and applied the ordinary negligence standard of reasonable care under the circumstances. Pages that still claim otherwise are out of date.
Can I get the onboard video from the bus?
Only if it is preserved in time. MTA buses record continuously and overwrite footage within weeks. A spoliation letter identifying the specific bus and run must go to the correct entity quickly, which is one of the first things we do.
I was hurt on a school bus or an express bus. Is it the same claim?
Not necessarily. School buses are usually run by private contractors for the Department of Education, and express routes may be operated by MTA Bus Company rather than New York City Transit. Different operators mean different defendants and sometimes different deadlines, which is why identifying the fleet number early matters.
Can I claim No-Fault benefits as a bus passenger?
Yes. No-Fault generally covers medical bills and lost earnings regardless of fault, and the application deadline is typically 30 days from the accident. To also recover pain and suffering you must meet the serious injury threshold under Insurance Law §5102(d).
What does it cost to hire a bus accident lawyer?
Nothing upfront. We work on contingency, our fee comes from the recovery, and you owe nothing if we do not win. The consultation is free.
Talk to a Queens Bus Accident Lawyer Today
Call The Injury Group at 212-468-4878 (212-GOT-HURT) or email info@theinjurygroup.com. Bring the bus and route number if you have them, any photographs, and the date of the accident so we can calculate your notice deadline on the first call.
Sources
- MTA NYCT Safety Data, New York State Open Data (data.ny.gov), April 2019 through June 2026.
- NYPD Motor Vehicle Collisions – Crashes, NYC Open Data, Queens bus-involved crashes, calendar year 2024.
- Bethel v. New York City Transit Authority, 92 N.Y.2d 348 (decided October 15, 1998).
- N.Y. Public Authorities Law §1212; N.Y. General Municipal Law §50-e and §50-h.
- N.Y. Insurance Law §5102(d).
Reviewed by Margarita Moshe, RPh., Esq., Managing Attorney, The Injury Group. This page is general information, not legal advice.
