Metro Transit settles with family of crash victim for $1.5 million

The settlement between Metro Transit and the family of an Auburn man killed when a bus struck his pickup on Highway 164 was for $1.5 million, the family disclosed Thursday.

The terms between the transit service and the parents of Michael Dahlquist were decided late last year, according to Metro spokeswoman Rochelle Ogershok.

Dahlquist, 21, died in April 2007 after his truck was struck by a bus driven by Metro operator Sandie Olosky, 37, of Issaquah. Olosky had swerved the bus into oncoming lanes to avoid hitting a vehicle that had slowed. Her bus hit the bumper of that vehicle before colliding with Dahlquist's pickup.

State Patrol Trooper Jeff Merrill said after the accident that the primary factor in the collision was Olosky's "significant perception delay" in realizing the vehicle in front of her was slowing down. "She just simply didn't see it," he said.

Olosky was cited for negligent driving by the State Patrol, fined $250 and had her commercial license revoked. She was terminated six months after the fatal accident.

According to the lawsuit, Olosky had a history of endangering passengers and the public, but had been allowed to keep her job for years.

"This woman was a documented danger and Metro failed to protect the public. This incompetence cost my son his life," said Jeff Dahlquist, the victim's father.

Olosky had a number of recorded driving offenses while employed by Metro back to 1997, including rear-ending a vehicle and sideswiping a truck without stopping.

She had been fired by Metro in 2005, but was reinstated after arbitration.

Metro now has a policy requiring retraining for any operator involved in more than two accidents in a year, Ogershok said.

Christine Clarridge: 206-464-8983 or cclarridge@seattletimes.com