SEPTA to Outfit Entire Bus Fleet with Safe Turn Alert Systems from Harsco

Harsco Corporation has announced that its Safe Turn Alert (STA) pedestrian warning system, developed and produced by the Company’s Protran Technology unit, part of its Harsco Rail division, has been selected for installation across SEPTA’s entire transit bus fleet of 1,075 vehicles.  Terms of the order were not disclosed.  Installations will begin this summer and are expected to be completed by the middle of next year.

“With this award, SEPTA, the Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority, continues its push to become the safest transit agency in the country,” said Peter Bartek, Vice President of Business Development for Protran Technology.  “We are committed to helping them reach that goal.”

The Amalgamated Transit Union, the largest union representing transit workers in North America, estimates that roughly one pedestrian per week is killed by a transit bus in the United States.  The STA system is designed to warn pedestrians from stepping off the curb whenever an approaching bus is about to turn the corner.  The system incorporates an audible warning message as well as flashing LED strobe lights on the bus that are automatically activated by the operator’s turn signal and by proximity sensors adjacent to the vehicle’s steering gear.  The STA system can also provide upgrades for additional blind spot protection beyond conventional mirrors.

The Safe Turn Alert system joins another Protran-produced safety solution, the Roadway Worker Protection (RWP) system, which SEPTA selected last year for its rail operations as part of its growing commitment to personnel safety.  Like Safe Turn Alert, the Roadway Worker Protection system uses audio and visual warnings to alert both the train operator and railway track workers when they are within proximity of each other along the railway. SEPTA is currently equipping many of its crews and equipment with the RWP system.