When the 1990 MCI three-axle motorcoach came to a rest, two boys, one a seventh-grader and the other an eighth-grader, were dead. Both youngsters were killed when they were ejected from the bus during the crash. Neither youngster was wearing a seat belt at the time, as seat belts are not required for passengers on intercity motorcoaches. The other 29 people on board, including the driver, were injured.

The accident occurred 95 miles north of Albany as the bus was heading south on Interstate 87 in the Adirondack Mountains. Rain and light snow were falling and road conditions were slushy.

The coach is owned by Gray Line of Manhattan, and operated by Short Line – Hudson Transit Co. of Mahwah, N.J., a major commuter and excursion bus line. According to industry, the firm operates the fifth largest motorcoach fleet in the nation. The coach had been chartered for the trip by the East Meadow Middle School on Long Island, N.Y.

The driver of the vehicle was 44-year old Dennis D. Ellis of Brooklyn. According to statements by other motorists, Ellis was exceeding the 55 mph posted speed limit at the time of the accident. He has been issued a summons for speeding. Ellis has had several traffic violations and at least two accidents while driving a bus in the past four years according to Department of Motor Vehicle records.

Following its investigation of the accident, "We issued a ticket [to Mr. Ellis] for speed, for going to fast for existing road and weather conditions," says Major Kenneth Cook, a troop commander for the New York State Police. "The accident investigation found the causes of the accident to be [excessive] speed for the conditions and driver inattention. [Our determination was] based on the physical evidence at the scene, statements of witnesses, as well as the expert of investigators on the scene."

Cook says the state police have turned the case over the Essex County Attorney. It will be several weeks before County Attorney John McDonald determines if the accident should be sent to a grand jury or other action taken.

Ellis is a qualified CDL driver. He is also an Article 19A driver under the New York driving code. This section covers all bus drivers who transport school children or work as private carriers; it includes a background check of criminal history, accident involvement and traffic violations.

"He had no 19A disqualification under the vehicle law as a certified bus driver," says the DMV spokesman.

Meanwhile, according to Charles Flateman, executive vice president of Gray Line of New York, "We have all of our drivers go through the additional procedures to get them qualified to transport school children. That is our company policy. All our drivers go through a three-week training program before they transport people and ongoing training thereafter. We do not train in school buses." The "additional procedures" Flateman referred to are the 19A qualifications.

It is unknown whether Ellis had received the standard 20+ hours of training, annual in-service training, or pre-service training required for school bus drivers under New York state low.

Flateman says the motorcoach had received all regularly scheduled maintenance and had its brakes replaced last February. "This bus had no equipment problems and no log violations."

As with the Carrollton, KY and Palm Springs, CA accidents which involved school buses in activity trip service, this accident will likely not be classified as a school bus accident. New York regulations specifically exempt motorcoaches from the school bus definition. The low only defines vehicles as school buses if they are owned, leased or contracted for by a public school system; moreover, contracted buses must be used in to-and-from school transportation to qualify.

The last motorcoach accident in New York in which school children were killed occurred in 1973 when three youngsters died. That accident precipitated developments of Article 19A.

The National Transportation Safety Board is investigating the accident too. It will be several months before the federal agency issues its findings.

Editor's note: On Oct. 28, 1992, the New York Public Transportation Safety Board issued its Final Report into the Gray Line Tours accident.