Latest news with #driverFacingCameras
CTV News
3 days ago
- CTV News
OC Transpo studying driver-facing cameras on buses in response to coroner's inquest
OC Transpo is exploring the idea of installing driver-facing cameras on the existing bus fleet, but staff warn installing the cameras will have 'significant budgetary pressures.' The jury at the coroner's inquest into the fatal 2019 OC Transpo bus crash at Westboro Station made 60 recommendations aimed at improving safety and bus operator training, including installing operator-facing cameras on all buses 'to be used for safety purposes.' In a report for the Transit Committee meeting on Thursday, staff said OC Transpo agrees with the recommendation to install cameras on buses and is now evaluating how to roll out the program. 'A robust policy/program will be developed and will ensure appropriate protections for employees' privacy,' says the report. 'Currently, all buses purchased since 2016 are equipped with CCTV cameras which staff may be able to adjust to adopt a wide -angle view that would include the operator. Older buses do not currently have cameras; however, staff will explore the feasibility of retrofitting the existing fleet.' A policy for cameras will be similar to the one that exists for voice and video recorder use on the O-Train. Staff say OC Transpo will conduct research into the recommendations for driver-facing cameras on buses, consult with all stakeholders and unions, and conduct a 'technical analysis on how to retrofit the existing fleet.' A report on the possible rollout of cameras on buses and the potential costs will be presented to the Transit Committee in the third quarter. OC Transpo also agrees with the recommendation from the coroner's inquest to investigate operator-facing cameras or other technological options that would allow for real-time feedback to transport operators 'regarding potential distraction, fatigue and unsafe driving behaviour.' Of the 60 recommendations from the coroner's inquest, 41 are directed at the City of Ottawa. The report says that based upon the initial review of the recommendations, four have already been implemented, 14 are in the process of being implemented and 23 recommendations require further analysis. One of the recommendations from the inquest was for the City of Ottawa to have a 'dedicated fleet of training buses,' saying it would 'ensure there is equal opportunity to train on all types of buses in service and during all hours where service may be offered.' The report says that 'given the current shortage of buses in the OC Transpo fleet, this recommendation cannot be implemented at this time.' OC Transpo says a reliable fleet will not be available until the final three months of 2027 as new buses enter the fleet. Staff are also working on the recommendation to lower the speed limits on approaches to the Transitway stations. 'An analysis of the cost and impacts on customers' travel experience and on operations of installing physical countermeasures and the removal of station canopies is conducted,' staff said. 'The Transitway stations identified in the inquiry are specific to the Southeast Transitway from Hurdman to South Keys stations and the Southwest Transitway from Baseline to Barrhaven Centre stations.' The recommendations that have already been implemented included the city ensuring appropriate snow removal on the approach to transit stations along the Transitway and the city including comprehensive training focused on the risks associated with distraction, fatigue and other human factors in the New Bus Operator Training Program. The coroner's inquest examined the deaths of Judy Booth, Bruce Thomlinson and Anja Van Beek when their double-decker bus crashed into a bus shelter overhang at Westboro Station on Jan. 11, 2019. None of the 60 recommendations to the City of Ottawa and the Ontario government are binding. With files from CTV News Ottawa's Ted Raymond
CBC
4 days ago
- CBC
City outlines next steps on driver cameras and other bus crash inquest recommendations
The City of Ottawa says it will examine the potential installation of driver-facing cameras on OC Transpo buses, following a recommendation from a recent coroner's inquest into a fatal 2019 bus crash. The nearly month-long inquest in April delved into the circumstances of a packed double-decker bus slamming into a Transitway shelter on Jan. 11, 2019. Three passengers — Judy Booth, Bruce Thomlinson and Anja Van Beek — died in the crash and many others were injured. While the city accepted civil responsibility, the driver, Aissatou Diallo, was charged with 38 counts of dangerous driving causing death or bodily harm. She was acquitted of all charges in a judge-only trial in 2021. Diallo did not testify at either the inquest or her trial, but an OC Transpo official told the inquest that if a driver-facing camera had been on board Diallo's bus, more would be known about her actions in the lead-up to the crash. The jurors ultimately issued 60 non-binding recommendations, two-thirds of which were directed at the city. They included a call for Ottawa to "install operator-facing cameras on all OC Transpo buses to be used for safety purposes." "This data should be regularly tracked by an accountable member of the governance team," the jurors added. Adjusting current cameras The city has now provided its initial response to the recommendations, with "a comprehensive status update and action plan" to follow later this year. City staff agree with the idea of operator-facing cameras on all OC Transpo buses, adding that "a robust policy/program will be developed" similar to the one that already exists for cameras on OC Transpo's federally regulated LRT line. But installing cameras could bring "significant budgetary pressures," the city warned councillors ahead of the next meeting of Ottawa's transit committee on Thursday. "In order to develop a response to this recommendation, research will need to be completed, a robust policy must be drafted, all relevant stakeholders and unions must be consulted, and a technical analysis ... will need to be undertaken. Once all of these steps have been completed, the costs can be presented for consideration through the budget process," the city said. One option, according to the city's initial response to the recommendations, could involve adjusting existing CCTV cameras on all buses purchased since 2016 so that they offer a wide-angle view that would include the driver. Just over 350 of the buses in OC Transpo's fleet currently have CCTV cameras, the city clarified with CBC via email, while the remaining 382 buses do not have onboard cameras. "Staff are currently assessing the feasibility of utilizing the current CCTV camera system to address the inquest recommendation or determine if a new camera system is required," according to the city's email. Union concerns Cost aside, the notion of driver-facing cameras on buses has sparked privacy concerns with the local union representing OC Transpo drivers. When lawyers made their final pitches to the inquest jury, Amalgamated Transit Union (ATU) Local 279 was the only group to oppose driver-facing cameras on buses. However, in an interview with Ottawa Morning the day after the jury issued its recommendations, ATU Local 279 President Noah Vineberg clarified the union's position. "Privacy always becomes an issue, but that does not trump safety," Vineberg said. "As long as [the use of camera footage is] properly monitored, as long as there's an agreement in place on how those systems are going to be used, and if it's in the lens of safety ... then ATU 279 doesn't stand in the way." The city said its plan "will ensure appropriate protections for employees' privacy." Consultations on LRT cameras took several years, the union's lawyer told the inquest. Negotiations on a new contract for OC Transpo drivers have begun and have involved discussion of video footage, Vineberg said via email. More days of retraining The inquest jury also recommended that a portion of OC Transpo's bus fleet be dedicated to training drivers. City staff said they support this idea in principle but that given the current shortage of buses, the recommendation can't reasonably be implemented without significant impacts to service. "It is expected that a stable, reliable fleet will not be fully available until Q4 2027," according to the city's response to the recommendations. The inquest heard that after she was involved in a preventable and serious collision in December 2018, Diallo received only one day of refresher training before being put back on the road. Within a week, she was involved in the fatal Transitway crash. "How quickly after a previous incident she was back behind the wheel — that was really kind of astonishing to me," said Laura Shantz, a member of the advocacy group Ottawa Transit Riders. The jury recommended the city establish a separate evaluation procedure for probationary operators involved in serious preventable collisions, and that before the driver returns to service they receive a minimum of five days of retraining. Aspects of this recommendation are currently in place, according to the city, but staff will review the recommendation and report back to the transit committee later this year. The committee will meet Thursday to discuss the city's initial inquest response and other agenda items starting at 9:30 a.m.
