The Danger Before and After the Flight : A surprise inspection finds safety violations in shuttle vans at LAX

When catching a shuttle ride home from the airport, sometimes it seems too much to assume you’ll get a driver who actually knows where he is going. It shouldn’t be too much to assume that the shuttle van will have good brakes.

The state Public Utilities Commission conducted surprise safety inspections of 45 shuttle vans at Los Angeles International Airport Wednesday, and guess what? More than half, or 26, had to be ordered off the road, most for safety violations. Imagine how long an airline with that sort of safety record would stay in business.

One van was so dangerous, authorities told The Times, that it was not allowed to be driven out of the shuttle-van holding area near LAX. Other vehicles, the PUC said, also had significant problems, including poor brakes, damaged steering gearboxes, defective taillights and broken windshields.

What was the Public Utilities Commission--usually associated with rate changes--doing checking airport shuttle vans?

The PUC licenses door-to-door shuttle vans. The California Highway Patrol has the responsibility for inspecting buses, but only those with more than 10 seats. Vans with fewer than 10 seats seem to have fallen through a bureaucratic crack--no state agency has the authority to routinely check them.

Why doesn’t someone routinely inspect small shuttle vans? According to William R. Schulte, director of transportation for the PUC, a similar surprise inspection at San Francisco International Airport last year also found defective vans. That discovery prompted airport officials there to start their own inspection program. The PUC has said a similar program is being considered by LAX officials.

And mechanical problems shouldn’t be the only concern. While missing or faulty paperwork might not seem much of a worry, we suspect most passengers would be more than a little nervous to find a driver lacked an operating license or proof of insurance or that one driver had been working for 24 hours straight.

The Department of Airports, working with the Airport Commission, should find a way to make inspections of small vans routine business in Los Angeles.

Enforcement shouldn’t be left to occasional “surprise” visits from a state agency. Otherwise, the next “surprise” could be a very unpleasant one for some unsuspecting riders.