The state Division of Consumer Affairs (DCA) has issued violations to 17 commercial autobus owners for violating “Angelie’s Law,” 13 of which are based in Hudson County – including the company that employed the driver involved in the accident that killed Angelie Paredes two years ago.Â
By John Heinis/Hudson County View
The commercial autobuses, better known as “jitneys” or “jitney buses,” operating on public roads with 40 passengers are required to have interior and exterior notices directing passengers to report service complaints to the DCA, and the telephone number must also be provided as a result of Angelie’s Law.
“This requirement, among others, is designed to protect the safety of both riders and the general public,†Steve Lee, the Acting Director of the NJ DCA, said in a statement.
Lee also noted that in February, the DCA issued a consumer alert about the public notice requirement of Angelie’s Law and also mailed an advisory letter to commercial autobus owners.
The following 17 companies hit with violations are as follows:
Jersey City
Community Lines, Inc.
Azael Alvarado
Walter Carranza
North BergenÂ
Emelys Transportation, LLC
Victor Lara, aka VL Services
Samuel Salgado
NV Bus Service, Inc.
Union CityÂ
Ekramy Elgendy
Luis Portalatinmendoza
Joseph Transporte, Inc.
West New YorkÂ
Orlando Villanuevavazurita
Jose Rodriguez
Claudio Paguay
Beyond HudsonÂ
Hasan Tamini – Haledon
Marina Transit Corp. – Bellville
Boulevard Lines, Inc. – Ridgefield
Amigo Transit, LLC – Carteret
Each company, except for NV Bus Service, was cited for one non-compliant vehicle and issued a notice of violation imposing a $1,000 civil penalty and $176.87 for the State’s investigative costs.
NV Bus Service was cited for three non-compliant vehicles and one driver who did not have the proper license for transporting passengers. The company was issued a $4,000 civil penalty and $503.61 for the State’s investigative costs.
Boulevard Lines, Inc., which also operates under the name Sphinx Transportation, was the employer of driver Idowu Daramola, who crashed a bus into a lamppost near John F. Kennedy Boulevard East and 56th Street on July 30, 2013 – causing the lamppost to fall on Paredes’ stroller and she soon died from her injuries, via CBS.Â
Daramola was said to have been on his cell phone at the time of the accident.
A North Bergen resident recently attended a board of commissioners meeting to express his disdain for “undocumented people” operating jitney buses on Bergenline Avenue, also proclaiming “we won World War II but we can’t win the war on these vans.”