Evacuation and Rescue of Elderly and Disabled Passengers from Paratransit Vans and Buses

摘要

The provision of efficient and safe methods for the effective evacuation and rescue of elderly and disabled passengers from such vehicles as standard and modified vans, body-on-chassis-small buses, and heavy-duty transit buses is necessary to ensure their safety during system use. Effective methods and equipment are identified and developed as a function of transit use by the elderly and disabled, accident incidence rates for the various vehicles, a study of actual transit vehicle characteristics and their crashworthiness, and an analysis of emergency preparedness forces. Needed equipment is identified along with suggestions for familiarity and simulation training, the development of standard operating procedures, the debriefing of actual accident experiences and the sharing of this technology.