State gives Ride the Ducks 'conditional' safety rating

OLYMPIA, Wash. (AP) -- State transportation officials have upgraded the Ride the Ducks amphibious vehicles from unsatisfactory to a 'conditional' safety rating.

The Washington Utilities and Transportation Commission decided on Wednesday the tour company may continue operating if they keep passing safety inspections

The commission also approved the company's safety plan.

Ride the Ducks Seattle restarted passenger service about two weeks ago.

A crash on Sept. 24 killed five international college students and injured dozens of others when a repurposed military "duck boat" swerved into an oncoming charter bus on Seattle's Aurora Bridge.

The company is scheduled for another round of compliance investigations and vehicle inspections in six months and again in a year.