Federal safety officials said Wednesday that they are not formally investigating the buses at the center of four Ride On bus fires within the past 17 months.
But the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration told The Washington Examiner that it is talking with Montgomery County officials about the Champion model bus fires.
“The agency currently has no evidence that would warrant a formal investigation of this vehicle model but is monitoring the issue and will take action if necessary,” NHTSA spokeswoman Karen Aldana said in an e-mail.
On Tuesday, a Ride On bus caught fire while on Columbia Pike/Route 29 near the White Oak area of Silver Spring.
The fire was the fourth on that same model since September 2010. The 50 buses originally purchased of that model, which resembles an airport-style shuttle bus, represent only about an eighth of the county bus fleet but have been the only buses to catch fire in the system during that time.
