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New Study Indicates Bus Transportation Boosts Safety for Passengers, Pedestrians, and Cyclists

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Bus transportation is often heralded as a plausible solution to help alleviate traffic congestion in urban areas. Besides freeing up roadways, bus transportation just might be the safest bet when it comes to getting around town, according to a new study from the Université de Montréal Public Health Research Institute (IRSPUM) published in the Journal of Urban Health. The study analyzed the top 10 busiest bus routes in Montreal from 2001 to 2010, and came up with quite a few statistics to support public transportation.


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The risk of injury was four times greater for car passengers than bus passengers on the 10 bus routes surveyed. The study also revealed that car transportation triggered a greater number of pedestrian and cyclist injuries (four times more and five times more, respectively) than bus transportation. In addition, traveling by car resulted in five times more fatal and severe injuries than traveling by bus. The study lays a solid foundation for a widespread shift from private to public transportation, encouraging more people to take the bus.

Despite their large size, buses offer safer transportation than cars. For one thing, bus drivers are thoroughly trained and the buses themselves drive at slower speeds. Because buses have the capacity to carry a large group of people, fewer buses are needed than cars to transport a given number of people, which minimizes traffic.

Bicyclist on the Road

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The study alone estimated that bus travel along the 10 routes (and during the 10-year period surveyed) saved 156 cyclists, 476 pedestrians, and 1,805 vehicle passengers from injury. Just imagine how many injuries and fatalities could be prevented if bus transportation became a more dominant way of traveling on a global scale? We look forward to more details in the days ahead as the industry reevaluates conventional transportation modes and takes practical steps to improve public safety.


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News Source: ScienceDaily