The Land Transport Authority (LTA) said that the prototype system will be trialled on SBS Transit bus service 69. The bus route covers housing estates and schools in the Bedok and Tampines area, serving mainly families going towards Tampines Bus Interchange and MRT.
The system was designed and developed by Temasek Polytechinc, and then customised and fabricated by ST Kinetics.
The stroller system, which will be placed in the designated wheelchair space, has two slots for the insertion of the side handle of the stroller. This means that a forward facing stroller will be secured using the slot closer to the front of the bus and a backward facing stroller will use the slot closer to the rear of the bus. This is to ensure that the child will always be facing the back of the bus, for safety reasons.
There is also a retractable seatbelt to secure the stroller to the handlebars of the bus.
LTA is working on designing a sticker with instructions to be placed beside the system in the next few days.
Mr Jordan Ang, 20, who graduated with a diploma in product and industrial design from TP in April and designed the initial stroller system as part of his final year project, said that he looked at how such systems were designed in Japan and Germany.
“We were most concerned with convenience, as well as safety of the child,” he added.
While the restraint systemis an additional safety measure, it is not mandatory for parents to use it.
Since April 2 this year (2017), open strollers have been allowed on board public buses. They must be however be no larger than 120cm in length and 70cm in width.
Strollers should be placed in designated wheelchair space, but wheelchair users will be given priority.
If not placed in the wheelchair area, strollers should also not be placed where they would obstruct the entry or exit of passengers, such as in the aisles or on the upper deck of double-decker buses.
If the bus is already crowded when a commuter tries to board with an open stroller, the bus captain may request for the stroller to be folded.However, if the bus gets crowded when the open stroller is already on board, the stroller is not required to be folded.
There are currently no plans to roll out the system in other buses yet, said LTA.
LTA will be gathering feedback from parents and bus captains following the implementation of the system.
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