[IL-Talk] CTA Electric Buses

Sun Jun 27 23:33:00 UTC 2021

In my oppinion, I feel that until they have everything figured out for
the  people that are out walking on the streets wanting to feel secure
and safe, they should not put anything like that electric on the road.
Sounds too dangerous and what if a blind person is walking around and
the driver ain't paying attention, and they hit that person, we have
to think of those factors as well.

On 6/27/21, Deborah Kent Stein via IL-Talk <il-talk at nfbnet.org> wrote:
>
>
> Dear Kelly,
>
> I totally agree that the silent nature of electric buses is a serious
> concern to the blind community and, in fact, to all pedestrians. I have
> discussed this with John Pare in  governmental affairs at our national
> office. He confirmed that the Pedestrian Safety Enhancement Act of 2010 only
> covers vehicles that weigh under 10,000 pounds, so many or most buses are
> currently exempt. We will have to work on this at the national level,
> perhaps getting an amendment added to the current bill. But local pressure
> can also help. If municipalities show reluctance to purchase silent electric
> vehicles, that can push the manufacturers to add a sound component. We need
> to think carefully about how best to proceed and make sure that we present a
> united front.
>
> Debbie
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: IL-Talk [mailto:il-talk-bounces at nfbnet.org] On Behalf Of Kelly Pierce
> via IL-Talk
> Sent: Saturday, June 26, 2021 11:24 PM
> To: il-talk at nfbnet.org
> Cc: Kelly Pierce <kellytalk at gmail.com>
> Subject: [IL-Talk] CTA Electric Buses
>
> I had my first opportunity on Saturday to evaluate the CTA electric buses.
> Was anyone else at the electric bus event at Jefferson Park? I sent the
> following to CTA officials.  The Chicago Transit Board should not approve
> additional funding for electric buses until the Authority puts in place
> mitigation measures to prevent the higher crash rates caused by electric
> vehicles compared to those with internal combustion engines. Apparently,
> Federal guidelines do not require external audible sounds from the electric
> buses CTA purchased, but they do not consider higher ambient noise levels
> that often occur in big cities like Chicago.  Until Saturday, no one at CTA
> seems to have taken the issue of pedestrian safety and electric buses
> seriously, despite reports from the federal government from 10 and 12 years
> ago that clearly show that the quiet nature of electric vehicles causes more
> crashes. Additionally, I asked the CTA board to request the agency’s
> President, Dorval Carter, to investigate and evaluate pedestrian crash
> mitigation efforts of electric vehicles and to deploy measures as part of
> the pilot program known to reduce risk, such as artificial sound emission at
> low speeds.
>
> I would welcome the Federation’s support to amplify my voice and join me in
> raising concerns regarding electric buses and blind pedestrian safety.
> Kelly
>
>
> June 26, 2021
>
> This communication Recapitulates information stated to CTA ADA Compliance
> Officer Amy Serpe and Assistant Chief Engineer - Vehicle Engineering -
> Electrification Jason House. The comments were provided on June 26, 2021 at
> the Jefferson Park Transit Center in an electric bus demonstration event
> organized by the Chicago Transit Authority.
>
> Part of the demonstration included the electric bus departing from the
> transit center and then returning a few minutes later to the location near
> where it was before. I observed both the departure and arrival of the bus.
> The departure of the bus could barely be heard and I could not hear the
> arrival of the electric bus. The presence of diesel buses were easily
> detectable by sound.  The transit center is a major hub on the northwest
> side of Chicago where multiple bus routes stop for passengers so immediate
> comparisons with diesel buses were possible.
>
> I shared my observations with Jason House and referenced federal regulations
> regarding electric vehicles.  He looked up the regulation and found that if
> a vehicle has a sound greater than 60 decibels it is not required to make an
> artificially created external noise.  He took a reading of the ambient noise
> at the transit center and found the level was 80 dB. Jason House said he
> contacted a representative of the bus manufacturer, Proterra, during the
> demonstration who told him that another transit agency had installed
> technology for external sounds to warn pedestrians of the bus’s presence. I
> explained both to Jason House and Amy Serpe that many places in Chicago have
> ambient sound conditions that exceed 60 dB, such as the Jefferson Park
> Transit Center, bus stops near expressways and along busy thoroughfares like
> Lake Shore Drive. A blind pedestrian who could not visually see the bus
> would not know that a bus was close if the bus were traveling at slow speeds
> because the sound of the bus could not be heard over the ambient
> environmental noise level. Unlike with diesel buses, I and other blind
> pedestrians are at greater risk of injury and crashes with electric buses
> because their presence cannot be heard. In 2009 the National Highway Traffic
> Safety Administration released the report “Incidence of Pedestrian and
> Bicyclist Crashes by Hybrid Electric Passenger Vehicles” with the finding
> that a hybrid electric vehicle was two times more likely to be involved in a
> pedestrian crash than a vehicle using an internal combustion engine in
> situations involving low-speed maneuvers. A 2011 update to the original
> report titled “Incidence Rates of Pedestrian and Bicyclist Crashes by Hybrid
> Electric Passenger Vehicles: An Update” offered more data by adding
> additional years of State crash files as well as by increasing the number of
> States included in the analysis from 12 to 16. The analysis was conducted on
> a total of 24,297 hybrid electric and 1,001,000 internal combustion engine
> Honda and Toyota selected vehicles in 16 States. A total of 186 and 5,699
> hybrid and internal combustion vehicles respectively were involved in
> pedestrian crashes, and a total of 116 and 3,052 hybrid and internal
> combustion vehicles respectively were involved in bicycle crashes. Overall,
> the odds ratios indicate that the odds of a hybrid electric vehicle being in
> either a pedestrian or bicycle crash are greater, 35 percent and 57 percent
> respectively, than the odds of an internal combustion vehicle being in a
> similar crash.
>
> As is clear from the reports, the danger of electric vehicles is not
> confined to blind persons. Sighted pedestrians and cyclists are in danger as
> well because they walk or turn in front of electric vehicles without knowing
> their close presence. Jason House said the feedback would be brought to the
> electric bus project team for investigation and evaluation.
>
> CTA must recognize the increased likelihood of crashes with pedestrians and
> cyclists from electric vehicles, such as electric buses, and take strong
> measures to eliminate the higher crash rate.
> The measures would include having electric buses emit sounds higher than
> ambient noise when traveling at low speeds. I appreciate very much the
> opportunity to evaluate the electric bus pilot program and look forward to
> learning about further efforts.
>
> Kelly Pierce
>
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