[IL-Talk] CTA Electric Buses

Mon Jun 28 00:13:43 UTC 2021

An audible signal should be applied to all buses, not just electric.
When in high traffic areas I've been startled by buses that suddenly
pull-up without any audible notice. Diesel buses don't make any more
noise at a bus stop than electric ones given the engine is a hundred
feet behind the door.

On 6/27/21, Kyle Chellino via IL-Talk <il-talk at nfbnet.org> wrote:
> 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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