In the EU each year approximately 20000 coaches of over 5000 kg are involved in accidents that result in personal injuries. Each year more than 30000 persons are seriously injured in these accidents, and over 150 occupants of buses and coaches suffer fatal injuries. In contrast to other accident data, no tendency for a significant reduction can be found.

Only three EC Regulations (Appendix A) currently influence the structural and seat design for buses and coaches. The general objective of the EC RTD project “Enhanced Coach and Bus Occupant Safety” is to generate new knowledge that will allow further minimization of the incidence and cost of injuries caused by bus and coach accidents.

One of the main tasks in this project is to make a detailed study of the occupant behavior by performing MADYMO simulations, so that the injury causes in frontal impact can be determined. A detailed bus and occupant model are used to investigate the following items:​

• The effect of different type of restraint systems, 2-point and 3-point seat belts.
• The interaction between several restraint systems and different sizes of adult occupants, and, as a special case, of children in (school) buses.
• Recommendations for improving ECE/R.80.

These investigations have led to a virtual interior assessment with multiple coach occupants, including optimization of seat design parameters. Simulation models like this can play an important role in identifying the benefit of new designs by application of new test methods and regulations.