| Title | Human factors issues in motorcoach emergency egress |
|---|---|
| Record ID | 35489 |
| Personal Name Creator |
Pollard, John K.; Markos, Stephanie H. |
| Source | 201p. in various pagings |
| Corporate Creator | John A. Volpe National Transportation Systems Center (U.S.); United States. Department of Transportation. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration |
| Publisher | United States. Department of Transportation. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration |
| Publication Date | 20090800 |
| Language | English |
| Abstract | FMVSS 217, Bus Emergency Exits and Window Retention and Release specifies a series of dimensional and physical requirements for emergency exits. The intent of NHTSA is “to minimize the likelihood of occupants being ejected from the bus and to provide a means of readily accessible emergency egress” for those occupants under crash and other emergency scenarios. These scenarios can include catastrophic bus accident situations, such as a vehicle fire, rollover, or water immersion where immediate emergency evacuation is necessary under life-threatening and difficult conditions. In 2007, NHTSA issued a research plan to address priority actions specifically related to motorcoach emergency egress. This interim report describes the preliminary findings of the first year of a two-year NHTSA-funded study which focused on three topics: 1) emergency exits, 2) interior and exterior emergency exit marking, and 3) emergency exit lighting. A literature search was completed; several field visits were conducted, which included emergency window and roof exit hatch operation; and two sets of motorcoach egress experiments were conducted. Potential motorcoach design changes identified and discussed in this interim report include: redesign of the wheelchair access door and/or installation of another side door for use as an emergency exit; redesign of emergency window exit opening and release systems; additional and larger emergency roof exit hatches; and increased conspicuity of emergency exits, either by use of high performance photoluminescent marking material or crashworthy emergency exit lighting, or dual-mode systems, which combine both technologies. |
| Rosap ID | dot:9009 |
| Rosap URL | https://rosap.ntl.bts.gov/view/dot/9009 |
| TRT Terms | Emergency management; Buses; Bus transportation; Transit safety; Human factors |
| General Subjects | Bus safety; Motorcoaches; School buses; NHTSA; FMVSS 217; Emergency egress; Emergency evacuation; Emergency exits; Photoluminescent; HPPL; Emergency lighting |
| Classification | NTL - SAFETY AND SECURITY - Transit Safety and Security; NTL - SAFETY AND SECURITY - SAFETY AND SECURITY; NTL - SAFETY AND SECURITY - Human Factors; NTL - PUBLIC TRANSPORTATION - Bus Transportation; NTL - PUBLIC TRANSPORTATION - Transit Safety and Security |
| Geographical Coverage |
United States |
| TRIS Online Accession No |
1333189 |
| Contract Number | HS15/HS15A1/HS57A1 |
| Report Number | NHTSA-2007-28793 |
| Availability | Volpe National Transportation Systems Center, Technical Reference Center |
| Resource type | Research Paper |
| URL | https://ntlrepository.blob.core.windows.net/lib/35000/35400/35489/MotorcoachEgressYr1.pdf |
| Format | |
| Database | NTL Digital Repository |