Tractor-Trailer Kills Metrobus Driver in I-395 Collision

The Metrobus driver who was killed early this morning after being hit by a tractor-trailer as he stood at the back of his disabled bus on Interstate 395 has been identified as Keith Dodson, 37, of Washington, Metro spokeswoman Cathy Asato said this afternoon.

Dodson, a five-year Metro veteran, was on his way from a bus garage in Arlington to begin his route between Fort Belvoir and the King Street Metro station when the bus experienced mechanical difficulties; he stopped on southbound I-395 at the Shirlington exit shortly before 6 a.m. No passengers were aboard, said Metro spokeswoman Lisa Farbstein.

Arlington County police spokesman John Lisle said a woman driving a Nissan Sentra saw the stalled bus and attempted to pull around it to the left, running into the path of a tractor-trailer delivering milk to grocery stores. The tractor-trailer bumped the Nissan, propelling it onto the shoulder to the right of the bus. The truck driver, attempting to pass the Metrobus on the right shoulder, hit the bus driver, Lisle said.

Dodson died after being taken to George Washington University Hospital, Farbstein said. Metro Transit Police, Arlington County police and Virginia State Police are investigating the incident. Lisle said the driver of the tractor-trailer had not been charged.