Bus Stop.

Plaintiff was riding on a bus when, according to the bus driver, a car came out of nowhere, causing the driver to slam on the brakes. Plaintiff, who had been standing in the aisle holding a handle, lost her balance, struck her head on the fare box, lost consciousness, and has no recollection of the incident. A Transit Authority internal investigation concluded that the bus driver had failed to recognize the hazard.

In spite of the Transit Authority's own finding, the First Department dismissed the complaint, saying that, as a matter of law, the bus driver had acted reasonably in an emergency not of his own making, in Rahimi v. Manhattan & Bronx Surface Transit Operating Authority, which was decided on September 27, 2007. The court explained that the Transit Authority's s rules requiring that its drivers anticipate that other drivers will violate the rules of the road impose a standard of care higher than the common law, and cannot be the basis for imposing liability on the Transit Authority. The court gave short shrift to plaintiff's expert witness who merely offered a conclusory reiteration of the Transit Authority's determination.