Municipality Found 20% Responsible For Collision Where Public Transit Bus Had Right Of Way

On January 26, 2016, Madame Justice Roccamo released her reasons for judgment in Gardiner v. MacDonald, 2016 ONSC 602.

The case arose from a collision between a public transit bus and an SUV in an intersection. The collision resulted in the death of three of the SUV's occupants including its operator. The operator of the SUV had been drinking and entered the intersection on a red light. The bus entered the intersection on a green light just moments later and struck the SUV from the side. The case proceeded to trial solely on the degree, if any, to which the bus operator and the municipality were liable for the accident.

Upon considering the evidence of the bus operator and a number of accident-reconstruction experts, the court made the following findings of fact: