Government Must Review Safety Aspects Of Double-Decker Buses – Experts

All safety concerns relating to the usage of double-decker buses throughout the nation must be examined by the government.

This was necessary, according a road safety expert who made the call because these buses are dangerous to operate especially during a long-distance travel and even prone to accidents when moving at high speeds.

According to Associate Professor Dr. Law Teik Hua, Head of Traffic Safety Research Center, Universiti Putra Malaysia, double-decker buses have a higher center of gravity  and  mass, requiring more time and distance to stop.

"A tall object has a higher centre of gravity. This makes it unstable. It is even worse if there are many passengers at the upper deck.

"They also have a greater propensity to overturn and, hence, more likely to be involved in traffic collision than standard buses," he said told The New Sunday Times.

Even if the weight on the lower deck was doubled, the high centre of gravity's detrimental effects would still be present, Law stated.

Additionally, he mentioned that since seat belts are not provided on buses, injuries, particularly fatal injuries, would be more likely to occur.

In the event of an accident, passengers who are not restrained will result in a "human collision." Given this, governments ought to impose a requirement that all bus passengers buckle their seatbelts.

"Double-decker buses are only suitable to use on level roads and at low speed. In the United Kingdom, double-decker buses are only in the city," he said.

Law added that the abilities of double-decker bus drivers need to be improved due to the considerable contrasts between them and regular buses.

The Road Transport Department (JPJ) and other relevant agencies must give this group of bus drivers increased training and only allow drivers with a specific licence to operate double-decker buses.

Tan Sri Lee Lam Thye, a social activist and the leader of the Alliance for Safe Community, encouraged the government to review all the double-decker bus safety regulations because they were in high demand among residents and tourists.

"A study should be done whether double-decker buses are safe to be on certain roads such as the highways here, where some stretches are downhill and have bends.

"The recent bus crash incident has affected the safety of the public and this is a great concern for many of us. We can't wait around for more disasters to happen before an appropriate action is taken to curb future incidence," he said, adding road engineering also played an important factor in ensuring safety for such vehicles.

He was referring to a double-decker bus accident that included 26 passengers. The Ipoh-originating bus flipped turtle after the driver was thought to have lost control of the vehicle.

Following a tragic double-decker bus disaster in Genting Highlands in 2013, Lee, who served as the panel's chairman, said the panel had issued significant recommendations to the government to suspend operating double-decker buses to and from the highlands.

"Our findings at that time itself showed that double-deckers were risky to be used on hilly terrains. However, the buses posed lesser risk when used for short distances within the city roads," he said.

He said that the Genting disaster, in which a double-decker bus fell 60 metres down a ravine and killed 37 lives, had caused a national uproar. 53 people were on board the bus at the time.

Source and reference: NST