Current Practices in the Use of Onboard Technologies to Avoid Transit Bus Incidents and Accidents (2020) / Chapter Skim
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Pages 27-48
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From page 27... ...
27 The case example sites included within this examination were selected on the basis of varying pilots and implementation of onboard collision avoidance technologies to reduce bus accidents and incidents, as reported in responses to the survey questionnaire. The following agencies -- also illustrated in Figure 22 -- were selected from the survey respondents as case example sites.
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From page 28... ...
28 Current Practices in the Use of Onboard Technologies to Avoid Transit Bus Incidents and Accidents development through the implementation of the DART Service Plan as adopted by the voters on August 13, 1983, and as amended from time to time.
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Agency Dallas Area Rapid Transit GoTriangle Greater Bridgeport Transit Greater Cleveland Regional Transit Authority King County Metro Transit Metropolitan Transit Authority of Harris County Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority 20 17 N TD A ge nc y Pr ofi le s Annual Passenger Miles 117,278,600 18,546,048 17,145,461 122,633,841 483,528,654 285,574,057 532,244,156 Annual Revenue Miles 27,565,509 2,830,944 1,916,537 13,416,938 33,818,331 34,576,281 39,615,495 Annual Unlinked Passenger Trips 31,951,162 1,662,758 5,477,783 30,931,172 102,013,147 58,050,763 163,236,065 VOMS 537 77 43 299 1,015 692 1,193 Pr ev al en t C au sa l F ac to rs Not Following Policy or Procedure Distractions Disobeying/Not Observing Traffic Laws Training Related Fatigue Other Ex am in e an d Tr ac k Ca us al o r Co nt ri bu ti ng F ac to rs Accident Review Reports Other Employee Reporting Customer Reports Tracking Data Trends Internal Safety Reviews Employee Close-Call/NearMiss Reporting Reviews of Telemetric Systems Te ch no lo gy Im pl em en ta ti on D et ai ls Incident Type to Mitigate Mirror Strikes and Rear-End Collisions Pedestrian Strikes Pedestrian Strikes Pedestrian Strikes Pedestrian Strikes Pedestrian Strikes Pedestrian Strikes Technology Piloted/ Implemented Shield+ and Rear Bus Modifications Safe Turn Alert System Safe Turn Alert System Enhanced Transit Safety Retrofit Package Safe Turn Alert System Shield+ and Backeye360 Safe Turn Alert System and Blind Spot Awareness System NOTE: VOMS = Vehicles operated in maximum service. Table 2.
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From page 30... ...
30 Current Practices in the Use of Onboard Technologies to Avoid Transit Bus Incidents and Accidents operator displays that provide a warning if a collision is imminent. Stealth mode operations were conducted for a four-week period prior to transitioning to live mode.
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Examination of Synthesis Case Example Sites 31 Acceptance of Technology The data collection and test plan for the Mobileye Shield+ pilot includes a Driver Experience Questionnaire that was developed by Mobileye to obtain critical feedback to evaluate the system. The questionnaire, which will be disseminated in electronic form, asks operators to rate 11 statements on a scale from "strongly agree" to "strongly disagree." The operator name and additional comments are optional at the bottom of the electronic form.
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From page 32... ...
32 Current Practices in the Use of Onboard Technologies to Avoid Transit Bus Incidents and Accidents of pilot time, conducting the pilot on multiple vehicles if possible, to allow more than one operator at a time to have access to the technology. Additionally, they emphasized that dif ferent operators and different operating environments will result in a wide variety of operator feedback.
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From page 33... ...
Examination of Synthesis Case Example Sites 33 were any positive or negative comments from passengers regarding the technology. Operators expressed concerns about the sensitivity of the exterior proximity sensors, as the system would sound the alarm in unnecessary situations, creating an irritating distraction.
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34 Current Practices in the Use of Onboard Technologies to Avoid Transit Bus Incidents and Accidents consists of operators, trainers, planning staff, and union representatives, to identify issues that have the potential to affect the safety of the system. Some of the concerns raised in the Service Review Committee include bus schedules, bus stop locations, and passenger crowding.
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From page 35... ...
Examination of Synthesis Case Example Sites 35 Safety Outcomes Safety improvements at GBT have resulted in a 66 percent reduction in the agency's preventable collision rate. The average preventable collision rate was 3.27 collisions per 100,000 miles in the first 12 months after the start of the safety work.
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36 Current Practices in the Use of Onboard Technologies to Avoid Transit Bus Incidents and Accidents hazards and undesired events, and to resolve the identified hazards through a hazard assessment hierarchy. RTA's goal of safety risk management is to eliminate safety risks where possible; thus, it also recognizes the importance of ensuring that mitigation measures do not pose additional hazards.
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Examination of Synthesis Case Example Sites 37 The vendor agreement between RTA and Battelle included terms for troubleshooting, maintenance, and technical support, and specifically identified repairs and modifications that could be made locally versus those that required direct oversight by Battelle. While the structure of the pilot project established a direct relationship between Battelle and the technology vendor, RTA worked directly with Battelle and therefore did not have any direct interaction with the vendor.
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38 Current Practices in the Use of Onboard Technologies to Avoid Transit Bus Incidents and Accidents resulted in 81 percent correct alerts, with a 9 percent false alert rate and a 10 percent incorrect alarm rate. The deployment of the collision avoidance technologies did not result in any documented cost savings to the agency; however, total collision rates and preventable collision rates have decreased consistently from 2016 to 2018, as shown in Figure 27.
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From page 39... ...
Examination of Synthesis Case Example Sites 39 prototype vision system with an A-pillar monitor for blind spot detection, and it has received positive anecdotal feedback from the operators so far. There are plans to upgrade the accident review process in the near future to improve the efficiency of accident reviews.
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From page 40... ...
40 Current Practices in the Use of Onboard Technologies to Avoid Transit Bus Incidents and Accidents Metro recently deactivated audible pedestrian warning announcements on its buses after public and employee feedback on the pilot project revealed unacceptable reliability issues and noise complaints. Agency's Vendor Experience Metro's transit buses were modified on-site at the agency by vendor technicians, agency personnel, or both.
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From page 41... ...
Examination of Synthesis Case Example Sites 41 Summary METRO began piloting the Mobileye Shield+ technology and the Brigade Backeye360 camera and sensor technology systems in late 2017 after a fatal pedestrian collision. The Mobileye Shield+ technology is installed on five buses, and the Brigade Backeye360 camera and sensor technology is installed on two commuter buses.
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42 Current Practices in the Use of Onboard Technologies to Avoid Transit Bus Incidents and Accidents was disabled on the curbside of METRO buses. The agency states that the curbside sensors will remain disabled until the sensor can provide alerts only when the bus is traveling below 3 miles per hour.
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From page 43... ...
Examination of Synthesis Case Example Sites 43 icon displayed on the driver's dashboard. This modification may help reduce technology overload in the operator's workstation.
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44 Current Practices in the Use of Onboard Technologies to Avoid Transit Bus Incidents and Accidents implemented on its bus fleet. The initial demonstration of the Protran Blind Spot Awareness System included installation of the technology on two buses for a 6-month period.
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From page 45... ...
Examination of Synthesis Case Example Sites 45 Agency's Vendor Experience While SEPTA consistently monitors federal and state funding opportunities for these types of pilot programs, the pilots and technology solutions discussed previously were not part of a federally or state-funded project. The procurement of the Protran Safe Turn Alert System occurred with SEPTA funds through a regular bid with strict specifications to ensure the ability to work with limited interface with, and impact to, the steering column and other systems on the bus.
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46 Current Practices in the Use of Onboard Technologies to Avoid Transit Bus Incidents and Accidents Common Threads among Case Examples In the examination of these case example agencies, some common threads emerged. DART and SEPTA have invested in various consultant studies to analyze the specific events that have occurred at the two agencies and to provide recommendations for subsequent mitigation alternatives.
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From page 47... ...
Examination of Synthesis Case Example Sites 47 The Protran Safe Turn Alert System also includes data logging and GPS features. The Protran Blind Spot Awareness technology, available as an add-on to the Protran Safe Turn Alert System, provides the bus operator with an audible and visual warning if an object is detected on either side of the bus.
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From page 48... ...
48 Current Practices in the Use of Onboard Technologies to Avoid Transit Bus Incidents and Accidents King County Metro representatives indicated that there is value in developing a working group to determine the advantages and disadvantages of considered technologies. The agency does not want to disregard a potential technology that may be useful, but the time investment required to determine technology feasibility could be significant.
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