A new bus sound developed by Transport for London (TfL) is set to be trialled on the UK capital’s latest electric bus route from January 2020.
The sound is played through special speakers inside the front of the bus to ensure that all road users are aware of electric and hybrid buses when they are moving at slow speeds.
The trial on the 100 bus route comes ahead of the introduction of an acoustic vehicle alerting system (AVAS) that will be mandatory for all new ‘quiet’ running vehicles after September 2021.
AVAS will be consistent across all London bus operators and will be available to transport providers across the UK to ensure that people can detect and recognise a bus regardless of where they are in the UK.
The sound has been developed with input from Guide Dogs for the Blind, London Travelwatch and other accessibility, walking and cycling groups. Bus drivers, operators and union representatives have also provided input.
The sound will play until the bus reaches 12mph (19km/h), or when it is reversing or stationary at bus stops. When travelling above 12mph, the bus will make enough noise that an alert is unnecessary.
The pitch of the sound will vary with the speed of the vehicle, helping people know where the bus is and which direction it is going.
The sound will be trialled first at varying volumes on the 100 bus route – which runs between St Paul’s Cathedral and Shadwell – over a six-month period from January.
It will also be trialled on other routes – including the C10 route between Canada Water and Victoria from March, and the P5 route between Elephant and Castle and Battersea from May – as new zero-emission vehicles are introduced.
According to TfL, feedback from road users, residents, passengers and drivers across all routes will be collected to help develop the most effective system for all road users.
Claire Mann, director of bus operations at TfL, said: “We are committed to ensuring the safest buses are driven on London’s roads and pleased to announce this latest development with the Bus Safety Standard as we work towards vision zero.
“Working with a broad range of stakeholders and trialling AVAS on the 100 bus route and other routes in the following months will ensure the system is best equipped to alert all road users to the presence of quiet running buses, preventing collisions and making deaths and serious injuries on our roads a thing of the past.”
