Passenger surveillance
Description/Objective
This section deals with the applications and support available to the driver for immediate use. Applications and support intended for security and off-vehicle personnel, and for downstream analysis, action and prosecution are dealt with under Security, In-Vehicle Surveillance.
Passenger surveillance applications assist the driver to assure the safety of passengers, and to monitor their behaviour and conditions on board. The main functionality includes:
- Images of centre and rear door areas, to assist the driver in safe operation of the doors and to ensure that no accidents occur as the vehicle is moving away from the stop
- Images of the rear of the vehicle, to assist the driver when reversing and to avoid accidents with passengers and passers-by
- Images of the saloon of the vehicle – especially the rear portion of articulated buses, upper deck of double-deck buses – to observe any unruly behaviour, accidents, ill passengers, suspicious packages, etc. This alerts the driver to either intervene directly or to seek assistance.
Technologies, data and resources
The technologies used for Passenger Surveillance support to the driver include:
- Internal CCTV, located at the doors and at strategic locations in the interior of the vehicle
- Rear-facing CCTV and sensors
- Display screen for the driver, either as separate unit or as screen option on the integrated drivers’ on-board unit for CAD/AVM or for fare collection
- Communications, both for in-vehicle announcements and to liaise with the dispatcher if support or intervention is required
- Continuous loop recording digital video devices
It is increasingly common for rear-facing cameras and associated viewing screens for the driver to be installed as standard safety devices on buses and other commercial vehicles. CCTV specification and configuration continues to be according to purchaser’s request.
Advantages and Cautions
The primary advantages of Passenger Surveillance support to the driver are to:
- reduce the risk of accident or frightening incidents to passengers
- allow the driver to observe passenger behaviour within the vehicle
- assist the driver to detect items which require immediate attention, such as ill passengers or suspect packages
- support post-event security or safety incident analysis
- provide real time and historic crowding data, and even passenger count data, by location
The principal cautions in relation to Passenger Surveillance support are:
- procedures are required for both operation of the cameras, and how the driver should respond to specific situations. These need to be documented and included in driver training.
- procedures are required at the dispatch centre to ensure that reported incidents are acted upon promptly and consistently
Relevant Case Studies
Dublin, Prince William County