Texas revoked operators refuse to shut down

FORT WORTH, Texas (AP) - In the last 24 months, 201 Texas motorcoach operators were told their authorizations were revoked but an unknown number continued operating under new names, an official with the Texas Department of Transportation said.

Carol Davis, director of TXDOT's motor carrier division, said two of every five Texas charter bus companies have been ordered off the road in the last two years.

She said state officials were trying to find out how many revoked companies were operating under a different name, the Fort Worth Star-Telegram reported in its online edition Tuesday.

About 300 bus companies have permission to operate legally in Texas.

The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration has been publicly cracking down on so-called "rogue" motorcoach operators in the wake of an Aug. 8 bus crash near Sherman that left 17 passengers dead. The operator in that accident, Iguala BusMex Inc., was an offshoot of another company, Angel Tours Inc., that had been shut down earlier.

Authorities recently shut down bus companies in Irving and Houston for being affiliated with revoked companies.

By late September, state officials will begin posting complaints filed against bus companies on TXDOT's Web site, www.txdot.gov, Davis said.

"Consumers really need this information to make choices when hiring a busing company to transport their children," Davis said.

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On the Web:

Texas Department of Transportation, www.txdot.gov