TfL launches Bus Safety Programme on the back of promising stats

London bus needs accrediting

London’s  latest bus safety statistics show a 6% quarter-on-quarter reduction in injuries, as Transport for London (TfL) confirms details of a new Bus Safety Programme for the Capital.

The programme looks to brings together the latest technology, improved driver training and contract incentives for bus operators in a bid to build on the reduction in bus casualties seen during the first quarter of 2016.

From January to March 2016, 1,399 people were injured in incidents involving buses, down from the 1,488 injuries which were recorded between September and December 2015.

87% of the injuries in the first quarter of this year were classified as minor and of those 74% did not require hospital treatment.

The overall trend for collisions involving a bus or coach where someone has been killed or seriously injured has reduced by 48% over the last decade.

There are almost 9,200 buses in operation across London with around 6.5m bus journeys made every day on 700 different bus routes.

TfL’s Bus Safety Programme seeks to develop a world leading bus safety standard for London, with a range of safety technologies and products being developed and tested by manufacturers on London Buses throughout 2016/17.

TfL will also update its bus contracts to include new safety incentives and publish additional bus collision data to to further improve transparency for customers and other stakeholders.  

TfL will also deliver a new safety training module to all 24,700 bus drivers by the end of year. ‘In the Zone’ is designed to raise drivers’ awareness of the risks that road users take either as a driver or vulnerable road user such as a pedestrian, cyclist or motorcyclist.

As part of the Bus Safety Programme, the Sarah Hope Line was launched earlier this year to offer support to anyone injured or affected by an incident involving any of TfL’s services.

5 July 2016


 

Photo: George Fox Evangelical Seminary via Flickr. Licenced for use under Creative Commons.