TfL publishes latest bus safety statistics

TfL has today published bus safety statistics for the final quarter of 2015, showing a slight reduction in injuries on the network.

The safety statistics published for the final quarter of 2015 (October to December) show a slight reduction in the rate of injuries on the bus network, with 1,488 people being injured in incidents involving buses, compared with 1,491 in the previous three months (July to September).

A total of 87% of the injuries were classified as minor, of these 84% were treated at the scene of the incident and did not require hospital treatment. The casualty rate remains low, with 2.6 injuries per million passenger journeys.

Between October and December, there were around 600 million journeys on the Capital’s bus network and London buses travelled more than 100 million kilometres in passenger service.

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

Deputy Mayor for Transport, Isabel Dedring, said: “We’ve seen real progress in bus safety over the last few years as we’ve introduced 20mph zones across the city and trialled a range of cutting-edge technology on our buses. Although we have one of the safest bus networks in the world, we need to continue to drive improvements and meet the Mayor’s target of a 50% reduction in the number of people killed or seriously injured on the Capital’s roads by 2020. That’s why we’re creating a world-leading programme to place an even greater focus on safety and help keep passengers and vulnerable road users safe.”

Mike Weston, TfL’s Director of Buses, said: “The vast majority of journeys on the bus network are made without incident, however safety is a top priority and we are determined to reduce the number of people who are injured. To this end we have recently launched a Bus Safety Programme that seeks to reduce the number of incidents and lessen the impact of them when they do happen. The publication of these statistics shows our continued commitment to transparency and achieving those goals.”

The six-strand Bus Safety Programme uses the latest technologies, with products developed and tested by manufacturers on London Buses through 2016, due to be incorporated into new buses delivered in 2017.

TfL will be updating their bus contracting system over the next three months, creating incentives for bus operators to encourage greater focus on safety. A new safety training module “In the Zone” will be delivered to all 24,700 bus drivers in the Capital, raising awareness of the risks that road users taken, as a driver of a vehicle, or as a vulnerable road user.

Those who have been affected by fatal or serious injuries will supported by a UK first Incident Support service within its Customer Service Team, which will be available from April 2017.

Additional bus safety statistics are published, improving transparency for customers and other stakeholders, and from spring, TfL will publish additional bus collision data that will provide a breakdown of the most serious collisions by road user group.

 

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