All details held on Pedal Confusion on electric and hybrid buses since report on this in 2011
Request ID: FOI-0508-2223 Date published: 29 June 2022
You asked
All incidents that have occurred due to pedal confusion since report i can find, by TFL in 2011 highlighting this very serious issue.
HOW many related deaths in the last 10 years and how many injuries in the last 10 years.
Relevant response by TFL to all recommendations from this report and the one in 2018. I believe cameras in footwells has happened, only useful once accident has occurred. Are drivers reporting all incidents of this nature as was recommended. Warning Lights on Driver dashboard? Brake toggling and AEB? has any of these happened or any other advances made to protect the public?
From the meeting on December 2nd 2021, Tom Cunnington head of business development, was expecting answers to the problem of pedal confusion within two months. Have those answers been forthcoming? What is the outcome. As he and others on that committee pointed out, when pedal confusion happens it has catastrophic outcomes.
l look forward to all answers to these points and any other information on record around pedal confusion
We answered
TfL Ref: FOI-0508-2223 Thank you for your request received by Transport for London (TfL) on 31st May 2022 asking for information about pedal confusion on electric and hybrid buses. Your request has been considered in accordance with the requirements of the Freedom of Information Act and our information access policy. I can confirm that we holdthe information you require. Your questions are answered in turn below. You wrote: “All details held on Pedal Confusion on electric and hybrid buses since report on this in 2011: Question 1) All incidents that have occurred due to pedal confusion since report i can find, by TFL in 2011 highlighting this very serious issue. Answer: Since 2011, there have been 196incidents reported to TfL where, based on incident descriptions, unintended acceleration (sometimes referred to as ‘pedal confusion’) on electric and hybrid London buses is believed to have been a factor. The installation of pedal cameras is assisting to more reliably identify or rule out pedal confusion as a cause. Question 2) HOW many related deaths in the last 10 years and how many injuries in the last 10 years. Answer: There are a small number of recent incidents which remain under investigation, where pedal confusion is a potential factor. Where investigations have concluded, in the last 10 years there have been no fatalities and 39injuries arising from collisions involving electric or hybrid bus where unintended acceleration was believed to have been a contributing factor. Question 3) Relevant response by TFL to all recommendations from this report [https://content.tfl.gov.uk/solutions-to-pedal-confusion.pdfand] and the one in 2018 [https://content.tfl.gov.uk/pedal-application-error.pdf]. I believe cameras in footwells has happened, only useful once accident has occurred. Are drivers reporting all incidents of this nature as was recommended. Warning Lights on Driver dashboard? Brake toggling and AEB? has any of these happened or any other advances made to protect the public? Answer: All such recommendations are included in the TfL Bus Safety Roadmap, published on our website here: https://content.tfl.gov.uk/bus-safety-road-map-for-new-build-buses.pdf. The Roadmap is a key tool for bus manufacturers and operators in understanding TfL’s requirements for bus safety and enables them to plan for the future. Updates on where the recommendations stand are as follows:
Pedal Indicator Lights – TfL required these to be introduced on all new buses from 2019. These are introduced by bus manufacturers as a result of TfL specifying them for London’s buses. All buses operated in London must meet this specification (it is not a legal specification, although may align with legal requirements where these exist);
Brake toggling – TfL required this to be introduced on all new buses from 2021 (and some operators included it from 2019 where the bus manufacturer had a solution available). This is introduced by bus manufacturers as a result of bus operators needing buses which are compliant with TfL specifying them for London’s buses through the Bus Safety Standard;
Pedal Standardisation – has not yet been introduced (was required by TfL in 2021 for all new buses for bus operators to meet the Bus Safety Standard, but the necessary additional research to support the introduction was delayed by the pandemic). Further research by Aecom to speak to drivers and industry experts on what the most effective methods of standardising pedals would be was commissioned by TfL, and we hope to have a final draft to share with operators very shortly;
Pedal Acoustic Feedback – has not yet been introduced. It was required by TfL in 2021 for all operators to introduce this on their buses operating in London to be compliant with the Bus Safety Standard. TfL and bus operators are actively developing and trialling solutions on buses over the next few months;
Advanced Emergency Braking (AEB) Logic – this is not required by TfL until 2024 and will be aligned with our requirement for AEB more generally, delivered by manufacturers on behalf of bus operators who must comply with TfL’s Bus Safety Standard requirements. There has been a lot of TfL-led work with bus manufacturers and their suppliers to try to assure that this date can be met and TfL continues to support this outcome;
Footwell cameras are required by TfL for all new buses since 2019 through the Bus Safety Standard and through TfL’s mid-life bus refurbishment requirements.
In terms of drivers reporting incidents, we continue to work with the bus operating companies to foster a fair and open culture amongst staff in their organisations to encourage learning from near miss incidents. Question 4) From the meeting on December 2nd 2021, Tom Cunnington head of business development, was expecting answers to the problem of pedal confusion within two months. Have those answers been forthcoming? What is the outcome. As he and others on that committee pointed out, when pedal confusion happens it has catastrophic outcomes. Answer: This relates to the new research that Aecom have been conducting and for which a finalised report is almost ready to be shared with bus operators, as referenced in the answer above. If this is not the information you are looking for please do not hesitate to contact me. Please see the attached information sheet for details of your right to appeal as well as information on copyright and what to do if you would like to re-use any of the information we have disclosed. Yours sincerely, David Wells FOI Case Officer FOI Case Management Team General Counsel Transport for London
