Buses World News

SAFETY ON INTERCITY BUSES * USA

* New York - Bus passengers deserve a safe ride

-- Intercity bus service has become increasingly popular with travelers... Buses are the only affordable way many Americans can travel between cities... Bus trips can turn into harrowing journeys, as Lucas Peterson of The Times recently discovered when he took a discount Megabus coach from Chicago to Milwaukee and it caught fire. A 2012 report commissioned by the Department of Transportation estimated that there are about 160 fires on intercity buses every year. While most of those do not result in injuries or deaths, several major fires and accidents, including a deadly 2014 accident and fire in California, have highlighted glaring weaknesses in the regulation of buses... That makes it urgent that the Obama administration do more to make sure passengers arrive safely... The Department of Transportation says it has made bus safety a priority. In 2013, for example, it required that new buses have seatbelts — a change long resisted by the industry. Last year it required that intercity coaches have electronic stability control, which has helped save thousands of lives in cars. The department says it is working on other regulations and has stepped up bus inspections...
(Photo: Kennedy Plaza bus stand) -- NY, USA - The NY Times - March 14, 2016

Labels: buses' safety

* UK - FIRST ELECTRIC DOUBLE-DECKER BUS - ** London BUSES WITH SPEED-LIMITING TECHNOLOGY

* England - London unveils first electric double-decker bus

-- Bus set to start running on capital's roads in a month's time... Transport for London has unveiled the world's first fully electric double-decker bus, just a month before it is due to hit the capital's roads... The new bus, which was built by Chinese manufacturers BYD and comes with a £350,000 price tag, was debuted this week at an event next to City Hall... The bus is set to begin running on route 98 between Willesden and Holborn in mid-April, while TfL has said another four will soon be in operation as part of a pilot project... Daniels added that the principle driver behind using electric buses in London is to improve air quality...
(Photo from TfL: London double-decker electric bus unveiled) -- London, EN, UK - Business Green, by Jocelyn Timperley - 17 March 2016

** England - London buses to be fitted with speed-limiting technology

-- All buses in London will be fitted with speed-limiting technology from 2017, says Transport for London (TfL). TfL says it wants to reduce the number of people killed on the road and the technology, which prevents acceleration above speed limits, could help... The move follows the conclusion of trials on two bus routes with a range of road conditions and speed limits... Buses with the technology stayed within the speed limit 97 to 99% of the time, said the organisation... The incidents of excess speeds were seen on downhill sections of road, it added, but such events were "rare"... Leon Daniels, managing director of surface transport at TfL, said, he would now work with manufacturers so all buses coming off the production line could be fitted with the technology from next year...
(Image AP: New Routemaster) - London, EN, UK - BBC News - 18 March 2016

Labels: buses' safety, electric buses

SAFETY on BUSES * USA: Conmuters' facial recognition software

* Texas - DART addresses ‘Big Brother’ fears over facial recognition software

-- North Texas’ largest transit agency is about to appease safety advocates who have long called for security cameras on its light-rail trains. And it’s going one step further: using facial-recognition software on cameras throughout its system... Dallas Area Rapid Transit trains will start getting cameras this summer. That’s roughly when the agency will pilot software that could be used for everything from monitoring train capacity to alerting law enforcement when a wanted person is on a DART bus... The technology could also alert the agency when frequent fare evaders who have been banned from a bus route or train line try to ride the system. It still hasn’t been decided if the software will be used that way, though... DART has been eyeing security cameras on trains for about a decade. Calls for train cameras have often followed violent incidents or high-profile crimes on the light-rail cars. That includes an incident last year during which a man shot two fellow passengers on DART’s Red Line... The agency is spending $4.8 million to outfit 48 of its 163 train cars this year. All trains should have cameras by 2018...
(Photo: Dart Police) -- Dallas, TXS, USA - The Dallas News, by Brandon Formby - February 17, 2016

Labels: buses' safety, technonews

SAFETY ON BUSES * Holland: ELIMINATE CASH FARES

* Amsterdam - All Dutch buses eliminate cash fares on robbery fears

-- Cash payments on buses may soon be a thing of the bast in large parts of the Netherlands, following a series of robberies involving buses and bus drivers in Amsterdam-Noord, a teenager who used a shotgun in an incident last month and two knife-wielding men in clown masks attacking a bus driver last week... On Friday Amsterdam mayor Eberhard van der Laan announced that cash payments on the bus will no longer be possible by the end of the year... A spokesperson for Arriva Nederland, which is responsible for much of the Netherlands’ bus transport, told BNR that the company also wants to stop cash payments. The company is already running a experiment with card payments on buses only in Zuid-Holland. Arriva wants to extend this to the rest of the country, and completely abolish cash payments...
(Photo Politie: 15-year-old robs Amsterdam bus driver with shotgun, 13 January 2016) -- Amsterdam, Holland - NL Times, by Janene Pieters - Feb 15, 2016

Labels: buses' safety

40% SAFETY VIOLATIONS * Japan: Among chartered buses

* Nagano Pref. - Inspections reveal safety violations among 40% of Japan’s charter buses
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-- The transport ministry uncovered safety violations in 66 of 165 chartered buses inspected after last month’s fatal crash in Karuizawa, Nagano Prefecture, officials said... Because the inspections revealed more violations at smaller firms than at larger ones, the ministry is planning to review criteria for chartered bus operations... The Jan. 15 bus accident on a Karuizawa mountain road left 15 people dead, including its two drivers... Inspectors found that the proportion of buses in which violations were found, including not having detailed written route plans, topped 50 percent at firms with 20 or fewer buses... ESP, the Tokyo-based operator of the crashed bus, had a fleet of 12. The ministry found 33 cases of violations by that company in its special inspection after the accident...
(Nagano, Japan - Police officers direct buses during a surprise inspection Jan. 21 in Tokyo after a tour bus crash in Karuizawa, Nagano Prefecture, killed 15 passengers, including its two drivers) -- Karuizawa, Nagano, Japan - Kyodo/The Japan Times - Feb 15, 2016

Labels: buses' safety

SAFETY BUSES * Canada

* Quebec - Seatbelts on buses a matter of passenger safety

(Photo by John DiGiacomo/AP: Seatbelts on tour and inter-city buses would keep passengers from becoming projectiles in the case of a crash)
Montreal,QUE,CAN -The Gazette/Warren Mayhew letter -July 24, 2014: -- I totally agree with the Gazette’s view that all new tour buses should be built with seatbelts for all passengers... I would go even further and require that current tour buses without passenger seatbelts be required to be retrofitted and seatbelts installed... This requirement should also apply to all inter-city buses as well. Companies should be given a time frame to have the seatbelts installed on their current fleet... I know there is a cost involved, but without this requirement, it would take many years for the current buses to be retired and to make all buses safer... Our laws already require that all human occupants of cars and trucks wear seatbelts. These laws should be extended making it mandatory for drivers and passengers of tour and inter-city buses to wear seatbelts... It would help keep people in their seats, instead of becoming flying projectiles, in the case of a crash...

Labels: buses' safety

SAFETY on BUSES * UK

* England - London buses will be unable to break speed limit in drive to improve road safety

(Picture by Glenn Copus - Safety drive: some London buses will take part in a trial which will see their speed limited)
London,EN,UK -The London Evening Star, by M. Beard -18 July 2014: -- Some of London buses will be unable to break the speed limit in a bid to improve road safety in a trial to start next year... Cruise control technology linked to a digital speed map of all of London’s roads will be used to stop drivers going too fast in the project by Transport for London... The Intelligent Speed Adaptation, or ISA, will be used on buses for the first time on UK streets and it is hoped that due to their size the buses will also be able to prevent other vehicles from breaking the speed limit... A small number of buses will take in the trial as TfL looks to reduce the number of fatalities on London’s roads, around half of which involve vehicles breaking the speed limit... Earlier this month the City of London introduced a blanket 20mph limit with a pledge by its police to make it the first London borough where it is rigorously enforced... To further enhance bus safety, TfL is already running a trial with vehicles fitted with collision detection software - sensors that alert the driver when a cyclist or pedestrian gets dangerously close...

Labels: buses' safety

SAFETY BUSES * USA: Minnesota's

* Wiscosin - School buses pulled off road for missing brake sensor

(Photo: School bus yard)
Minnesota City,WIS,USA -WKBT, by Kyle Dimke -Jun 03 2014: -- Seven school buses were taken off the road near Winona last week after a safety feature was discovered missing... The Minnesota State Patrol received an anonymous tip and an investigation discovered several buses had a brake sensor removed... The bus company Minnesota City Bus Service drives around 3,000 kids to Winona-area schools every day... State Patrol said the tip received mentioned safety concerns and several equipment issues. They believe the missing brake sensor is the most crucial...

Labels: buses' safety

SAFETY * USA - Study: Mass. transit passenger put in peril

"Maintaining the fleet is a Herculean and expensive task, particularly since it is aging and many vehicles are due for overhauls or replacement"

Boston,MASS,USA -AP, by GLEN JOHNSON -5 Nov 2009: -- A sweeping review of MBTA finances found the largest transportation provider in Massachusetts has relied on an overly optimistic and unsustainable financing model that now is compromising safety because it cannot fund critical maintenance and equipment replacements... The scathing 36-page review classified 51 projects as "a danger to life or limb of passengers and/or employees" and suggested prioritizing those subway, bus and commuter rail repairs... On the subject of safety, the report noted that MBTA trains, subway cars and buses provide 1.2 million rider trips each weekday... The T has identified over $3 billion worth of projects that need attention under its "state-of-good-repair" program, but it has funded only 15 of those 201 projects_ worth just $203 million. The other 94 percent of projects went unfunded... "It stands to reason that an aging, complex and underfunded transportation system will have to confront unpleasant surprises that can result in safety hazards and service delays," the report adds... (Photo from policy.rutgers.edu: Boston SL street)

* Missouri - Move faster on bus safety

Kansas,Missouri,USA -The Kansas City -5 Nov 2009: -- It’s not often you find one federal agency criticizing another, but that’s what happened after the investigation of a 2008 motor coach crash in which 17 people from Texas died en route to a southwest Missouri music festival... The National Transportation Safety Board, which looks into crashes and recommends safety improvements, recently admonished the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration for doing too little on motor coach safety... The well-placed criticism must lead to changes. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, whose job is to issue manufacturing safety standards for highway vehicles, should move quickly to implement improvements... The only response has been a statement from the traffic safety administration that soon it will propose a requirement for motor-coach seatbelt installation, and it will do more to reduce driver fatigue and inattention... Unfortunately, not mentioned was the issue of roof strength standards, which safety officials say should be improved to provide more passenger protection in rollovers. Certainly, new vehicle manufacturers should incorporate safer roofs... (Photo from metrojacksonville: Kansas City MAX Bus Rapid Transit -BRT-)

* Illinois - Unsafe school buses still on road

Chicago,ILL,USA -Chicago Breaking News Center -November 5, 2009: -- As many as 2,000 school buses with potentially serious safety problems are still transporting students even though a bus manufacturer and government safety regulators have known about some of the recalled parts for as many as eight years, the Tribune has found... It has taken that long for officials with the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration to track down the company responsible for the recalls and force it to fix the problems, which are found in smaller buses around the country often used to transport disabled children... The federal recall process can be lengthy, but this delay is especially troubling because the safety problems seem so clear and the recalls took so long, experts in traffic safety said... For example, seat backs on some buses do not meet strength requirements, which could lead to more serious injuries in a crash; seat belt anchors also aren't strong enough and can become detached from the floor or wall; and wheelchair lifts in some of the buses are defective, according to records from NHTSA...

Labels: buses' safety, safety on buses

SAFETY * USA - Muni checks security cameras in wake of attack

San Francisco,CAL,USA -The San Francisco Chronicle/SF Gate, by Rachel Gordon -September 12, 2009: -- San Francisco Municipal Railway officials said Friday that they do not routinely inspect the surveillance cameras on the fleet to ensure they're working... Muni staff quickly began inspecting the vehicle-surveillance system this week and by late Friday afternoon were about halfway done. The crew, with a core of six video technicians, will work through the weekend and into next week, Municipal Transportation Agency spokesman Judson True said... Transit agencies began using surveillance cameras in the 1970s, and the technology and reliability has improved greatly since, said Greg Hull, the American Public Transportation Association's director of operations, safety and security programs... (Photo from korenixsecurity: bus-surveillance system)

Labels: buses' safety

SAFETY * Malaysia -Balik kampung rush: 1,200 buses tested for safety

Malacca,Malaysia -The Star, by MARTIN CARVALHO -September 10, 2009: -- The Road Transport Department has inspected some 1,200 express buses over the pass 10 days to ensure their roadworthiness during the “balik kampung” (homecoming) exodus this coming Hari Raya... Its director-general, Datuk Solah Mat Hassan, said some 2,000 enforcement officers are currently carrying out inspections of the tires and brakes of some 5,081 express buses to ensure they meet road safety requirements... He said 10 buses were found with brake problems while another 79 were found using worn out tires... (Picture from travelplus: Malacca Central, bus and taxi terminal)

Labels: buses' safety

SAFETY * China - Shanghai buses to have emergency escape windows

Beijing,China -Xinhua -7 Sept 2009: -- Emergency escape windows will be installed in about 8,000 city buses in Shanghai before the 2010 World Expo opens in May next year, local transport authorities said... All new buses must be fitted with escape windows opposite the rear door, and old buses will be gradually fitted with the emergency windows, according to the newspaper... Most air-conditioned buses don't have emergency exits, posing a concern after 27 passengers died and 74 were injured in a bus fire in southwest China's Chengdu City in Sichuan Province on June 5... The accident led to Shanghai Communications, Transport and Port Bureau recommending dedicated escape windows for the city's bus fleet... (Photo from Xinhua: In this June 11, 2009 file photo, a bus company personnel breaks emergency escapewindow open with a violent stamp during an emergency drill in Shanghai, in the wake of a freak bus blaze in southwest China's Chengdu on June 5 that killed 27 passengers, leaving another 63 injured)

Labels: buses' safety

Bus Safety * Germany - All-Round Safety

Travego with Active Brake Assist and Front Collision Guard...

Stuttgart,Germany -Mercedes Benz blogspot -Nov 25, 2008: -- Katrin Breitrück, Aerospace Engineering at the University of Stuttgart, now works as an engineer at Daimler Research and Advanced Engineering, where she heads the Active Brake Assist project. Thanks to the emergency braking system, bus travel could become even safer... Active Brake Assist’s premiere at the IAA Commercial Vehicle show in Hanover, Germany, in the fall of 2008 made Mercedes-Benz the world’s first manufacturer to introduce a proactive emergency braking system for buses... Driving presentations with the brand’s Travego model have shown how Active Brake Assist helps prevent rear-end collisions, thereby saving lives... (Photo: Travego Bus)

Labels: buses' safety

SAFETY * India - BEST to hotfoot CCTV installation in buses

Mumbai,India -TNN/Times of India, by Viju B -28 Oct 2008: -- The shootout that occurred inside the BEST bus has prompted the public sector utility to speed up its initiative to install closed-circuit
cameras in its 3,800 buses plying on the road... Bombay Electric Supply and Transport (BEST) officials admitted that they were yet to install a CCTV in the double-decker bus in which Rahul Raj, the 23-year-old youth from Bihar, fired randomly at the passengers. If installed, the digital data recorded by the camera would have provided a clear picture of the shocking incident which has sent shivers among many commuters who use this mode of travel every day... The BEST has already installed around 2,000 such cameras in the buses and the project was expected to be completed by March next year...

Labels: buses' safety

SAFETY * Canada - Call for transit cameras

Councillor concerned about unprovoked attack on bus

Edmonton,Alberta,Canada -The Edmonton Sun, by RENATO GANDIA -21 Sept 2008: -- At least one civic politician is calling for security cameras to be installed on all city buses following an unprovoked attack on a passenger Friday... Coun. Amarjeet Sohi, a former Edmonton Transit Service driver, said he would like to see buses outfitted with the equipment to prevent unruly behaviour and attacks on passengers and drivers... "I'm always concerned when I hear about attacks and the harassment of passengers, bus drivers and bystanders at transit facilities," Sohi said yesterday...

* Greyhound preparing security risk report for Transport Canada

Ontario,CAN -The Globe and Mail, by CAROLINE ALPHONSO -September 23, 2008: -- Greyhound is examining the safety risks posed to its passengers as the company reels from a second assault on one of its buses in less than two months... Spokeswoman Abby Wambaugh said the company is completing a safety and security risk-assessment report for Transport Canada after a receiving a grant of $285,000 from the federal department last year. But she declined to divulge what Greyhound has found, nor would she say if it is considering searching passengers for weapons before they board buses... Her comments come after another attack on a Greyhound bus on Sunday. A man allegedly assaulted a 20-year-old fellow passenger on a bus heading west between Toronto and Winnipeg. Witnesses said the passenger was stabbed in the chest, but police would not confirm a weapon was used...

Labels: buses' safety

SECURITY * USA - MTA plan aims to ensure safety on buses

City police would get word of 911 calls at the same time as MTA police

Baltimore,MAR,USA -The Baltimore Sun, by Michael Dresser -December 20, 2007: -- Bus operators are being encouraged to call police and stop the vehicle at the first sign of disruptive behavior as part of a plan to curb violence on public transit, the Maryland Transit Administration announced today... Responding to a series of assaults recently on its buses in Baltimore, the MTA also said it would step up the presence of its own police force and forge a closer working relationship with the Baltimore Police Department and the city school system... Among other steps, the MTA plans to speed notification of city officers when an incident occurs on a bus or other transit facilities in the city. Under this change, city police would receive word of 911 calls involving MTA facilities at the same time as MTA police...

Labels: buses' safety

On the buses * UK - Two-week crackdown

London,UK -News Shopper -12 Sept 2007: -- ... The operation, named Goldfinger 2 has been launched to coincide with the start of the school term and will see officers from the Met's Transport Operational Command Unit (TOCU) on buses to reassure the public... Safer Neighbourhood Teams and Safer Transport Teams will also be deployed during daytime and early evenings across 20 boroughs, including Bromley, Bexley, Greenwich and Lewisham... Transport for London, who are funding the initiative, will also be providing Revenue Protection Officers to carry out static and mobile inspections to check for fare evasion and ensure passengers have paid the correct fare for their journey...

Labels: buses' safety