19 August 2019
The first mirrorless bus arrived at Croydon garage on 17 July and will enter service at the end of August on route 197 which runs between Croydon Fairfield Halls and Peckham Bus Station.
Hannah Man (General Manager), George Thorp (Accident Prevention Manager), Belcher Penfold (Engineering Manager) and Terry Sproule (Unite Representative) visited the buses being built at the ADL factory in Scarborough earlier in July.
To replace the standard mirrors, monitors have been installed instead, which give more clarity in comparison to traditional mirrors. The view from the monitors are digitally processed to compensate for lighting, shadows or glare while it is transmitted to the displays, which are mounted inside the cab to eliminate reflections from windows.
The system offers the driver a normal mirror view at the top of the monitor and a wide angle view in the lower half. Screen brightness adjusts automatically to give excellent visibility both day and night. The cameras maintain good image quality in all conditions as the software removes any distortion from rain drops or dirt on the lens.
“In addition to improved visibility for our drivers, we’ll also benefit from reduced risk of mirror damage, or injury to passengers and pedestrians when pulling into bus stops.”
George Thorp, Accident Prevention Manager
When the first bus arrived, colleagues at Croydon were able to see and experience it for themselves. After obtaining feedback, Hannah reveals that they are impressed with the clarity of the mirrors and the wider view and further states: "We are looking forward to operating the 197s in service with this new and inventive technology. Our mentors have attended the specific training at the Camberwell Training Academy, and are now excited to share their knowledge with others."
