“European buses can potentially become the safest in the world," stated Jon-Ivar Nygard, Norwegian transport minister, after Norwegian research revealed a lack of European standards. The study followed after a driver was killed after a head-on collision at 34 km/h. It also turned out that many injury accidents go unrecorded because they involve passengers falling in the bus or getting on and off.
The Norwegian Centre for Transport Research presented the study 'Safety in bus transport in Europe' for Busworld Foundation. It summarised available safety measures and made several suggestions for a structurally based and efficient safety culture in bus companies.
According to the Norwegian study, there are currently hardly any legally binding measures like those applicable to cars and trucks. As far as crash prevention is concerned, buses are counted among trucks while they are conceived completely differently. "Besides the limited European technical regulations for buses, we do have our own standard in Norway that is prescribed by transport companies in tenders. We also see how transport companies often prescribe their own standards, how bus manufacturers come out with their own initiatives and technology to promote safety, and we also note how other countries prescribe other standard norms. If we can reach a fully-fledged European bus safety standard, European buses can become the safest in the world," said Norwegian transport minister Jon-Ivar Nygard.