It may seem like safety on buses is our favourite topic, but we firmly believe that it is the most important aspect to consider with your bus fleet.
Did you know?
- Between January and September 2018, 56% of injuries to passengers were slips, trips or falls
- 23% of slips, trips and falls on board London buses resulted in the victim having to go to hospital, and 63% of these people were seriously injured
- 32% of those seriously injured were elderly, and in 2017 there were two fatalities to elderly passengers who suffered slips trips or falls
With statistics like these, it’s easy to see why slip-resistance is a focus for Transport for London in their upcoming Bus Safety Standards regulations, and why safety is becoming more of a concern for bus services nationwide. We believe that in order to better protect those using public transport, there needs to be broader understanding of why these incidents occur.
Risks
Whether your fleet is on a busy city service or a quieter rural route, the risks to your passengers are the same.
The moving vehicle. The very nature of the bus itself causes a risk to those on board. Any changes in speed or direction, such as pulling into or away from stops, or any emergency manoeuvres, can unbalance your passengers and cause a fall, especially if their footing is not secure.
Wet weather. Wet weather outside means that water will be tracked onto the vehicle, creating a slip risk. Whilst out on the route, there’s no opportunity to mop this up (and nor is it viable to do so!) or place signage, so a floor with a reliable slip resistance is key.
Other contaminants. Any food, drink or other litter brought onto the bus has the potential to fall on the floor and create a slip or trip risk.
Entering or alighting the vehicle. Slips and falls often occur when passengers are walking to a seat as the bus moves away from a stop, or when passengers move toward the front of the bus before it has come to a full halt at a bus stop.
Vulnerable passengers. Elderly passengers or those with mobility difficulties are most at risk of suffering an injury on public transport, so every precaution with safety features and inclusive design should be taken.
Reduce your slip risk
An inclusive design will help to mitigate these risks, and we believe that a compliant safety floor should be an integral part of bus design not just at installation, but up until the vehicle needs refurbishing – or even longer. At installation, a floor should achieve a pendulum test value of 36 at the very least, negating the risk of a slip to a chance of one in a million, and retain this rating throughout the lifetime of the vehicle. The risks present on a bus will always be there, so why take the risk of your slip resistance fading away?
All Altro bus floors are guaranteed to maintain a slip resistance of PTV 36 or higher for the lifetime of the vehicle. We’re committed to being open and honest about the certification of our floors, so we publish all the results our floors achieve from different slip resistance tests on our technical data.
Want to find out more about ensuring a safe environment for your passengers? Get in touch!
Interested in exploring inclusive design? Register your interest for our Transport Design Forum event this summer.