Airline-style technology is driving safety on Merseyside’s buses

Pioneering technology which gives live footage of onboard andexternal bus activity – and which measures accident impacts – isbeing piloted by Arriva on Merseyside.

The new, bespoke technology is the result of a 5-yeardevelopment programme by Arriva and 21 st Century Crime PreventionServices. Arriva expects that around two-thirds of its Merseysidebus fleet will be fitted with the equipment by the end of 2005.

Merseytravel has helped to accelerate the initiative bycommitting to 'pound for pound' match funding, and other otherlocal authorities in the North West have expressed their interestin working in partnership with Arriva to introduce theground-breaking technology.

The system is capable of monitoring activity 24-hours a day andits cameras provide top quality playback. A major feature of theequipment is the airline-style 'black box' recorder function, whichcaptures key details of incidents and an in-built inertia chip thatcan identify the 'G-force' of any impact.

A 'code red' function gives the bus driver instant two-waycommunication with the control centre. Once the driver hits thecode red button, SMS text messages are released and cameras switchinto 'live' mode so that the control room personnel have liveviewing of the driver's situation and two-way communication isactivated. And GPS mapping data plots the exact location of the busso that it can be reached quickly should the driver needassistance.

In addition to improving on board safety, reducing accidents anddamage, Arriva also believes that the new technology will protectthe business from fraudulent insurance claims. Like other transportoperators, its insurance costs have increased due to the 'no win,no fee' compensation claims culture.

Bob Hind, managing director of Arriva North West and Wales,said:

One of the barriers to using public transport isconcern about safety. We are working hard to make bus travel safer,more convenient and a better experience for our customers andpotential customers.

We expect the benefits will be a reduction in vandalismincidents, anti-social behaviour, assaults, accidents andfraudulent insurance claims.

Bob Hind said:

We settle claims quickly when we are content that theyare legitimate. This new equipment enables us to refute bogus orinflated claims, whilst reducing litigation costs.

Staff at a control room, which is being set up in Merseyside,will be able to locate each of Arriva's 800 buses using GPStechnology and can download footage from each bus's nine camerasinstantly. And police have already found the system useful in thefight against crime.

Almost a quarter of Arriva's buses throughout the UK are nowfitted with CCTV, and Arriva plans to fit all of its UK buses– some 6,000 – with the system over the next fouryears. Arriva expects that around two-thirds of its Merseyside busfleet will be fitted with the equipment by the end of 2005.

Ends