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The following information has been produced by the ITF for use by national affiliates as part of our ongoing campaign to improve safety in the passenger motor transport industry. Unions are encouraged to distribute this information to their members and the general public.

1   Stricter access to the market for bus and coach operators
a) A large number of casual workers are known to be employed on a part-time basis. These casual workers have no professional commitment to the industry and, in return, operators have no commitment to them as regards stability of employment and working conditions. Coach companies should be required to demonstrate a minimum ratio of permanent employees to vehicles owned; for example, one permanently employed driver per coach.

b) In order to run a bus company, it is necessary for the operator to demonstrate compliance with certain conditions of competence. However, these conditions are often undemanding and permit operators with a very precarious financial basis to enter the market. In the European Union, for example, access to the market only requires the operator to demonstrate that he has 3,000 ECU of his own capital per vehicle, whereas the purchase price of a new coach is upwards of 150,000 ECU. The amount of own capital required to enter the market needs to be substantially increased in order to ensure companies' ability to operate and maintain their vehicles and employ staff with the backing of sufficient capital.

c) Operators should be required to prove their suitability through a standardised European qualification which attests to their competence to operate in the market in accordance with the regulations. An essential element would be the successful completion of an approved course of professional training.

2   New social regulations required
EU Regulation 3820/85 and the AETR need to be replaced by regulations which specifically limit duty time in such a way that driver fatigue is avoided and safety is enhanced. The new regulations need to be sufficiently uncomplicated for them to be properly understood by drivers, operators and enforcement authorities.

3   Observance and enforcement of regulations
a) Stricter and more frequent inspections of companies are required in the individual countries. Suspect companies should be the subject of regular and frequent checks. In order to do this, the regulatory authorities must be provided with the necessary human, technical and organisational resources required to fulfil their obligations.

b) The necessary legislative measures need to be adopted so that companies which repeatedly violate bus and coach safety regulations, including social regulations (EU Regulations 3820/85 and 3821/85 and the AETR), have their operating licences withdrawn. Prosecution of companies rather than drivers should be the rule, unless it is demonstrated that the driver alone is responsible for the offence.

4  Training and qualifications
An essential aspect of improving safety is ensuring that drivers are properly trained to an internationally-approved standard. Such training should consist of initial training for the purpose of obtaining the professional bus/coach drivers' licence and further vocational training at regular intervals during the course of employment.

5  Improved safety in design and construction
There are a number of areas where design and construction improvements are needed for the safety of passengers and drivers:

• impact resistance of bodywork of both single- and double-decker buses and coaches, with regard to both frontal impacts and side/rollover impacts.
  
• securing of seats to the bodywork to prevent them breaking loose in the event of a crash.
  
• provision of securely-anchored seatbelts to be worn by passengers during the journey, together with the design of impact-absorbent seat backs.
  
• provision for the safe stowage of personal items carried on board so that they are not thrown around the vehicle interior in the event of an impact.

This information was first published by the ITF as annex 2 to circular no 30/Rt.5/1996 on 29 January 1996.