NZ Bus welcomes CVIU action conclusion

19 November 2014

NZ Bus welcomes CVIU action conclusion

NZ Bus welcomes the resolution of the action taken against its subsidiary Wellington City Transport Limited (WCTL) under the Health and Safety in Employment Act, and accepts the penalty imposed by the Wellington District Court today as fair and reasonable.

The penalty is for one charge laid last month by the Commercial Vehicle Investigation Unit (CVIU) of failing to take all practicable steps to prevent harm in a work place, following an inspection of Go Wellington buses in May and August 2013, which identified issues with doors on some buses that could potentially catch disembarking passengers.

There was no incidence of serious harm to passengers and a low risk of door entrapment overall (eight incidents in 2013 out of over 20 million passenger trips delivered in Wellington per year), which was reflected in the final single charge laid and the penalty imposed.

NZ Bus Chief Executive Zane Fulljames says the health and safety of passengers and staff is an absolute priority, and that this process has not been taken lightly.

“It has provided an opportunity for us to identify some areas where we could have been doing better, and we have moved fast and comprehensively to address these.

“Following the CVIU inspections last year we launched a safety audit of our full fleet across the country encompassing more than 1,100 buses, starting with the Go Wellington fleet. We have made a number of improvements as a result to ensure our operations represent industry best practice,” says Mr Fulljames.

Improvements undertaken following the audit, for a total investment of approximately $1 million, have included:
• Installing sensitive edge strips on all rear doors so they retract if contact is made with an object that prevents them from closing
• Adding CCTV cameras and extra mirrors in buses to improve drivers’ line of sight
• Installing bus stop brakes that are activated when rear doors are open
• Establishing a new maintenance programme supported by specialist training provided to depot staff
• Putting in place additional specific driver training focused on safe door closing procedures.

These improvements have built on NZ Bus’ existing safety systems that were in place prior to the CVIU investigation that had seen it comply with existing industry and regulatory standards. They ensure NZ Bus complies with the new standard for bus door safety published by NZTA in October 2013.

“We recently achieved tertiary level ACC safety accreditation, the highest level attainable, for the second year in a row, and have a strong health and safety record that is improving year-on-year. But as the largest bus operator in the country, delivering over 20 million passenger trips annually in Wellington alone, we are always looking for opportunities to improve,” says Mr Fulljames.

“We have fully co-operated with the CVIU throughout this process and look forward to a constructive relationship moving forward so that we can achieve our common goals in respect of the health and safety of bus passengers.”

ENDS

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