A report in the Daily Beast raises the issue of whether federal regulators unfairly targeted Chinatown bus companies in a well publicized safety crackdown.
Several bus companies operated by Chinese immigrants were ordered closed after regulators cited the companies for numerous safety violations.
But according to the report, many of the citations were highly questionable and may have been based on incorrect information.
The report questions whether regulators launched the crackdown as a favor to more politically connected larger companies like Greyhound, Peter Pan and Coach USA who see the smaller carriers as growing threats to their business model.
In his piece for the Daily Beast, Jim Epstein wrote:
“In contrast to the large corporate-carriers, the owners and staff of the Chinatown companies lack political connections and often speak English as a second language, making them easy targets for abuse by regulators.”
A mechanic contracted by one of the targeted carriers, Lucky Star, put it this way:
“I’ve been in this business for over 40 years, and I’ve never seen inspectors behave like these guys.”
You can read specific examples about questionable citations issued by the regulators in the Daily Beast.
