Number of bus collisions while reversing
Request ID: FOI-4697-1718
Date published: 23 March 2018
You asked
I would like to know the number of bus collisions involved while buses were reversing in the last 5 years to date. The information will be helpful improve bus safety.
We answered
TfL Ref: 4697-1718
Thank you for your request received by Transport for London (TfL) on 26 February 2018 asking for information about the number of bus collisions while reversing in the last five years.
Your request has been considered in accordance with the requirements of the Freedom of Information (FOI) Act and our information access policy.
Unfortunately we do not hold the information you have requested as our incident recording system does not record whether the bus is reversing during the time of an incident. The data we collect in our incidents management system is chiefly statistical and we don’t have a separate field for buses reversing or the other possible manoeuvres a bus might make as this would make the system cumbersome and time-consuming for operators to log events shortly after they occur.
The only time buses reverse will be within controlled environments such as bus garages and a very limited number of bus stations. Bus operators generally have domain over the incidents that occur within garages so we do not have sight of those incidents that happen within the garage.
We regularly review our incident recording system and continue to seek new ways of improving the system. If there is need for new categories then this can be explored as part of our regular system upgrade cycle.
In terms of more serious incidents such as fatalities and major injuries, we publish the overall outcomes on our website, alongside the complete list of recorded collisions that occur. These outcomes come predominantly from operator investigations sometime after the event and are considered as part of separate tracking of more high profile safety events on the bus network. Please see our web site for more information: https://tfl.gov.uk/corporate/publications-and-reports/bus-safety-data.
Please see the attached information sheet for details of your right to appeal.
Yours sincerely
Sara Thomas
FOI Case Management Team
General Counsel
Transport for London
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