Tag: emergency

What is AIS 140 Certification? How Can You Get It for Your Vehicle?

Posted on by TSB Super Admin

It will not be an overstatement to quote that the economy of a country is majorly dependent on the efficiency of its transportation system. Termed as a backbone for any developing country, the transportation system is ordained to work to its full potential at all times.

A breakdown of your transport system is bound to throw your business out of gear, causing you irrevocable losses.

Given the significance of transport system to the growth of the country’s GDP, Indian government has come up with an Intelligent Transport System (ITS); a segment of Automotive Industry Standard (AIS) 140.

Below is the rundown of various ways in which public and private vehicles are made safe and efficient by adhering to the prescribed norms of AIS 140 certification.

Before you understand what the AIS 140 certification has in store for vehicle owners, it is important that you know about the recent April 2018 mandate that was released by the Indian government.

The Indian Government’s Mandate of April 2018

According to the mandate released by the Indian government, AIS 140 certification is mandatory for public service vehicles including public and private transport buses, taxis, cabs and transport buses that ferry employees.

Last but not the least, the bright yellow colored school buses are also instructed to get an AIS 140 certification. Through this AIS 140 certification, vehicle owners will meet all the specifications revolving around the safety, comfort, quality of service and efficiency.

The mandate made it imperative for these vehicles to be fitted with vehicle tracking devices and emergency buttons by 1st April 2018.

Seen as a revolutionary move on part of the Indian government to ensure the efficiency of both private and public vehicles, the April 2018 AIS 140 mandate thus brings in a perfect blend of camera surveillance, vehicle tracking and emergency request processing systems for the combined benefit of fleet owners, drivers and passengers as well. 

The Benefits of AIS 140 Certification

Offering an AIS 140 complaint transport system is a welcome step for the following reasons.

All the above categories of vehicles will come under the mandate of AIS 140 and will be attached to a vehicle tracking server manned by the Indian government.

The Indian government has plans underway to establish a host of authorized servers in every city streamlining a number of functionalities. Gaining strength from a cloud-based data storage, vehicle owners can make the most of the real-time vehicle updates coming from a tracking device that is fitted to their vehicles. 

The AIS 140 certification brings to the table a host of features. These are:

1. A Strong Vehicle Tracking System– This is one of the most significant features of AIS 140 certification. Through an automatic vehicle location tracking system, you will be in a position to monitor every trip your vehicle takes.

You will not only be informed about how you can optimize the consumption of vehicle fuel but also have data points substantiating the punctuality of your fleet regarding arrival and departure timings.

2. Efficient Management of Routes and Transport Schedules – The AIS 140 certification provides enough room for the efficient management of vehicle routes and their scheduling. The device can help you cut down your fuel expenditure by suggesting the shortest route to reach your destination.

3. An SOS Button During Crises– These vehicle tracking devices which are AIS 140 compliant come with a click-to-activate button which will help drivers during an emergency. Once an emergency information reaches the emergency response server, precautionary instructions will soon come your way.

Tagged as an AIS 140 Panic Button, passengers on board or the driver can activate this button during a crisis so as to send an emergency alert to the Government’s Command Center.

4. An Effective Tool To Manage Your Crew – The AIS 140 mandate is an ideal way to keep a watchful eye on the behavior of drivers while they are at the wheel. With an AIS 140 telematics system fitted to your vehicle, you can have a watchful eye on the sudden braking instances and the over-speeding metrics.

All such instances when a driver initiates a rash turn will be recorded and shared with you in the form of MIS reports.

5. Tampering Alerts – The telematics device will pop up an alert when your vehicle tracking device is being tampered.

6. Vehicle Health Advisor –The AIS 140 certification can become the barometer of the condition of your vehicle. The device embedded with a Vehicle Health Monitoring & Diagnostics tool can ensure the health of your vehicle at all times alongside allowing you to predict the possibilities of wear-and-tear that can cause transport breakdowns.

7. Safety of Passengers Paramount – In an attempt to ensure the safety of passengers onboard, an AIS 140 tracking device fitted to your vehicle will provide you with in-house video recording.

It is through this constant surveillance that you can ensure the safety of your passengers at all times. You can also get location-based announcements.

Coming to the next question of this blog, you will now learn about the preliminary steps that should be taken by you so that your fleet is bestowed with the AIS 140 certification.

How to Get Your Vehicle the Much-Needed AIS 140 Certification?

In order to ensure compliance to the AIS 140 guidelines to get your vehicle AIS 140 certified, you as a vehicle owner should fit your vehicles with a GPS tracking system along with a camera surveillance and emergency request button.

It is through these safety and monitoring gadgets that the Indian government can track any bus.

Allowing the control room to have hands-on information of what would have caused a mishap, it is through the AIS 140 guidelines that you can ensure the safety of your passengers.

As per the directive, both the existing and the upcoming vehicles should be equipped with GPS tracking systems and emergency buttons. That makes it imperative for automobile OEMs (other equipment manufacturers) to start the production of these vehicle tracking and safety devices.

Closing Thoughts

It will not be an exaggeration to state that the Indian government has taken a big leap towards ensuring the safety and efficiency of its transport system.

Once the AIS 140 directives are brought into total compliance by all the public and private vehicles plying in all the Indian cities, it will be time for the implementation of Advanced Driver Assistance System (ADAS) and Augmented Reality (AR).

The day is not far when these two technological advancements linked to the transport system will soon become inevitable functionalities with every vehicle under the radar of the Indian government.

10 Emergency Response Tips for School Bus Drivers

Posted on by TSB Super Admin

Majority of the students in a school depends on school buses for their transportation to and from school. Along with student safety within the school premises, the schools are highly responsible for the safety of students in bus too.

Drivers are an integral part of the school bus transportation system and that is why schools should pay close attention to driver trustworthy and efficiency.

Proper training programs and assessments should be performed before assigning the role of school bus driver to a person. Even when all precautions are made, there are high chances for emergencies at times.

So it is important to train the drivers to handle the emergencies well and save the situation. As children are involved in the scenarios, keeping them calm without being panic is the key.

Here let us have a look at what all emergency situations can come up while driving a school bus and the emergency response tips for drivers.

1) First aid and CPR training

Getting relevant training and awareness of first aid to be given when some emergencies occur during bus strip is important. With this training, a driver should know how to handle medical and trauma emergencies such as shock, bleeding control, seizures, and cardiac arrest.

2) Roadway positioning

Sometimes the accident can occur at a dangerous curve or a busy road. In such cases, drivers should take initiatives to evacuate students from the bus in a well organized manner in the modest speed to avoid any further mishaps.

A driver should be aware of the places in his bus route so that the students can be held safe in some place until they get some external help. 

3) Evacuate a school bus

A driver should be aware of the situations in which the bus has to be evacuated. If a fire is seen, sudden evacuation is recommended as hazardous gases, smoke and fire can get spread in less than 2 minutes.

If fuel spill occurs with the bus or the vehicle that is involved in the crash, evacuation should be immediate as a spark can stimulate fire.

If in case, power lines got curled across the bus, the best option is to stay inside until emergency responders gives the green signal or the power is switched off.

4) Passenger injury

If the students are already injured but not at the risk of losing lives, the best option is to stay calm inside the bus and give necessary first aid until emergency responders reach the spot. Evacuating the injured students can result in further troubles.

5) Passenger accounting

First of all, drivers should know the number of students travelling in the bus on the particular day. It would be good if he can identify the students with their name and other features.

This can be a good help by him to identify the students and convey the message at the right place if in case any mishap occurs. In worst cases, drivers can check their bags for any ID card or name slips on their books to identify them.

It is good to carry the emergency contact numbers of every student travelling in the bus. Some schools advise to keep a book containing list of students and their relevant data near to the driver seat.

This helps the emergency responders to do the necessary if the driver is unconscious.

6) Know the route

Bus drivers should keep the authorities informed about the routes they are handling. This helps authorities to respond fast with necessary help in case of a mishap.

Similarly, drivers should be aware of the emergency centres and hospitals in their bus route. This helps them to save the lives of students in case of an emergency.

7) Know the student locations

A driver should be aware of the locations of every student before they move the bus. A general recommendation is to avoid moving the bus if any students are within 10 feet of the bus as kids can go careless at times.

Similarly, make sure that bus is under control and not moving in case a student is stepping in or stepping down from the bus. It is the role of the driver and the assistant staff to see that children are not stepping down from a moving bus.

8) Signalling students

The emergencies may not always happen with collision to other vehicles. There are many incidents reported where the students got injured with the bus they were travelling due to costly carelessness.

So driver should see that all doors of the bus are properly closed before they start their drive and no students are standing beside door during the drive.

It is good to advise small children to remain seated and not walking when the bus is moving as emergency braking can cause falls.

When you drop off a small kid in the drop off point, see that someone responsible has arrived to pick them. If children have to cross the road in the pick up or drop off point, make sure that they do it safe with the help of your assistant.

9) GPS tracker

A GPS tracking system in the bus can be a good help in case anything goes wrong. And the system has to be accessible to the school authorities as well as the parents or guardians. A GPS tracking app can be a handy solution for both schools and parents.

10) Role of school

Schools should understand that driver training is an ongoing process and their performance should be reviewed on a regular basis.

Prevention is better than cure and so taking some measures before hand can minimize the possibilities of accidents and in worst case to manage the situation well.

Here are a few things school authorities need to take care of to handle the emergency situations well.

  • When a new driver is interviewed, see that the necessary protocols and guidelines are met.
  • Educate drivers on the driving safety and perform emergency handling drills on a regular basis.
  • Set up a GPS tracking system in the bus in order to locate the bus position in case of an emergency.
  • A regular assessment and inspection of the security and safety of the bus should be made
  • A database of the students travelling by school bus should be kept ready to handle an emergency.
  • Every school bus should be having a first aid kit and drivers should be trained in using it.
  • It would be good if schools can set up an emergency call facility in every bus.
  • A school should be having all proper emergency response supplies.
  • The safety and security policies of school bus have to be reviewed regularly.
  • Students should also be given proper guidance and tips to overcome emergency situations

Final Thoughts

Being a school bus driver is not easy as the role involves many complexities. Sometimes he should take the role of a friend, sometimes a guiding parent and sometimes a life saver.

He should obey all traffic rules and follow safe riding as he has an extra responsibility of handling a bunch of young kids.

The emergency situations may not be always familiar ones and drivers may come across many new problems during their drive. It is his role to stay calm and customize his response according to the present situation.