Passenger protection in single and double-decker coaches in tipping over

Botto, P.; Caillieret, M. C.; Patel, A.; Got, C.; Tarrière, C.

This paper is based on the accidentology study of 47 real-world coach accidents. From these 47 accidents, 21 sub-sample of 11 cases of coach “tip overs” have been chosen to be looked at. We will look at the various causes of bodily injury in coach passengers involved in accidents in relation to their position in the coach. Three types of tip overs are studied. They are:

static tip overs
dynamic tip overs with side sliding occurring before the coach comes to a full stop
tip overs involving a fixed obstacle

This study covers tipping over incidents for single as well as double-decker buses. The difference in resulting injury severity between total and partial ejection of coach passengers is also looked at. In conclusion, the various possible countermeasures to ensure better coach passenger safety are discussed.

Year

Entry

1985

Langwieder K, Danner M, Hummel T. Collision types and characteristics of bus accidents: their consequences for the bus passengers and the accident opponent. In: Proceedings of the 10th International Technical Conference on Experimental Safety Vehicles (ESV). July 1-4, 1985; Oxford, England.585-594. SAE 856078.

1985

Thomas C, Hartemann F, Tarriere C, Botto P, Got C, Patel A. Severe coach accident survey. In: Proceedings of the 10th International Technical Conference on Experimental Safety Vehicles (ESV). July 1-4, 1985; Oxford, England.904-914. SAE 856103.

1980

The Abbreviated Injury Scale 1980 Revision. Morton Grove, IL: Association for the Advancement of Automotive Medicine (AAAM); 1980.

1978

Stansifer RL, Romberg RA. An analysis of accidents involving buses and an assessment of the need for safety belt requirements in such vehicles. In: 22nd Annual Proceedings, Association for the Advancement of Automotive Medicine (AAAM). July 10-14, 1978; Ann Arbor, MI.203-215.

1977

Davis MM. A study of some schoolbus crashes. In: 21st Annual Proceedings, Association for the Advancement of Automotive Medicine (AAAM). September 15-17, 1977; Vancouver, BC.188-196.