Ice causes six Escort crashes

Escort vans were involved in six accidents Saturday night due to icy road conditions and van drivers said the service should have been shut down more quickly than it was. "Drivers said it was unsafe," said an Escort driver who wished to remain anonymous. "But people in the high command told Escort to keep driving. After two or three accidents, any logical person can figure out something is wrong." University Police said yesterday that Escort vans had two accidents before officials reduced the number of vans on the road. After five of the 10 vans were called back, Escort vehicles were involved in an additional three collisions before Robert Furniss, the director of transportation and mail services, made the decision to suspend service. One accident occurred after the shutdown. According to University Police, the accident reports read "slid on ice." In four of the six accidents, Escort vans slid on the slippery roads and collided with parked cars. One van struck a moving car and the other van swerved into a tree. Furniss said yesterday that shutting down the system is a difficult decision because the vans provide a "security function" which the students depend on in addition to transportation. "Penn Transit has grown so big that we are an integral part of the security system out there," he said. "If there are people to be served then we have to serve them." University Police Seargent Thomas Messner agreed with Furniss, saying that Escort has helped reduce the potential for crime on campus. "It's difficult for someone riding in an Escort van to be a victim of a crime," said. "It reduces the opportunitiy for victimization." According to Ron Jasner, the supervisor for claims and risk management, there were "no reported bodily injuries." Furniss added that all six accidents were minor and were only "fender-benders." But he said that Escort's emergency contingency plan is being reviewed as a result of Saturday night's accidents. And Transit Services will ask the University radio station, WXPN, to broadcast an emergency bulletin in the future in order to help the Escort Service shut down faster. "There are pieces of the plan that we are revising because of Saturday night," Furniss said. "The problem we ran into was that the main roads were fine, but the roads in the West and Southwest Philly and up in the Powelton area were ice. The side streets are where we had our accidents." The emergency contingency plan currently calls for Escort supervisors to check the roads when inclement weather causes poor driving conditions. Then the supervisor contacts Ron Ward, the manager of transport services, who calls University Police and decides whether to reduce the driving force to experienced drivers only and use only "the Aerostar vans and smaller vehicles." Escort also maintains the bus and campus loop. Furniss added that walking escort, transit stops, University Police, Van Pelt Library, Rosengarten Reserve Room and the medical libraries are informed of reduced transportation. These groups are also informed if the entire system is shut down. "We radio all vans to make final runs and drop-offs," he said. "The Escort supervisor will post notices at the transit stops that services have been closed and all staff will return to base."

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