PITTSBURGH – Allegheny County’s Port Authority has sued a Bethel Park property owner, due to concrete debris falling from the premises off that property and striking one of its light rail vehicles.
The Port Authority of Allegheny County filed suit in the Allegheny County Court of Common Pleas on Dec. 8 versus Jacob Ricciuti, of Bethel Park.
“On Sept. 2, 2019, a light rail vehicle (LRV) owned and operated by plaintiff Port Authority was traveling on a set of light rail tracks which adjoin defendant’s premises. There existed a dangerous, hazardous and/or unsafe condition on a hill at the rear of defendant’s premises, above the aforementioned light rail tracks, including several loose pieces of concrete that were not in any way secure or otherwise prevented from moving off the hill/defendant’s premises and onto said light rail tracks and into the pathway of an LRV,” the suit says.
“As plaintiff’s LRV was traveling outbound on the light rail tracks behind defendant’s premises, said LRV struck a piece of concrete that, upon information and belief, had moved down from the hillside of defendant’s premises, onto the light rail tracks and into the pathway of plaintiff’s LRV.”
As a direct and proximate result of the aforementioned contact between the piece of concrete from defendant’s premises and plaintiff’s LRV, the vehicle was damaged in the amount of $95,210.06.
The lawsuit states the defendant’s negligence took the form of causing and permitting the dangerous condition to exist on the premises for an unreasonable period of time, failing to maintain the premises in such a manner as to cause a risk of injury to plaintiff’s LRV using the light rail tracks adjoining the premises and failing to warn users of the light rail track adjoining’s defendant’s premises, among others.
For a count of negligence, the plaintiff is seeking damages in the amount of $95,210.06 plus costs and interest.
The plaintiff is represented by Roger W. Foley Jr., Robert L. Monks and Michael J. Cetra of the Port Authority of Allegheny County, in Pittsburgh.
The defendant has not yet secured legal counsel.
Allegheny County Court of Common Pleas case GD-20-012387
From the Pennsylvania Record: Reach Courts Reporter Nicholas Malfitano at nick.malfitano@therecordinc.com