Archive for the ‘Transportation’ Category
Buckle Up – DOT Proposes Seat Belt Mandate for Motorcoaches
Last Updated on Tuesday, 17 August 2010 11:57 Written by lgtadmin Tuesday, 17 August 2010 11:56
A new propsoal would mandate the installation of seat belts on new motorcoaches
In a new report, the Department of Transportation is proposing a mandatory installation of lap/shoulder belt for each passenger seating position in new motorcoaches.
The report states that while motorcoach transportation overall is a safe form of travel in the United States, several motorcoach crashes in 2008 have illustrated that motorcoach rollover crashes, while a relatively rare event, can cause a significant number of fatal or serious injuries in a single event.
DOT believes that the seat belt assemblies that would be installed on motorcoach passenger seats pursuant to this rulemaking could reduce the risk of fatal injuries in rollover crashes by 77 percent, primarily by preventing occupant ejection in a crash.
The additional cost to install seatbelts on a new motorcoach is estimated at $12,900.
Over the ten year period between 1999 and 2008, there were 54 fatal motorcoach crashes resulting in 186 fatalities. During this period, on average, 16 fatalities have occurred annually to occupants of motorcoaches in crash and rollover events, with about 2 of these fatalities being drivers and 14 being passengers. Given the high-occupancy of motorcoaches, when serious crashes do occur of this vehicle type, they can cause a significant number of fatal or serious injuries during a single event, particularly when occupants are ejected.
Seat belts are estimated to be 77 percent effective2 in preventing fatal injuries in rollover crashes, primarily by preventing ejection.3 This NPRM proposes to require passenger seating positions on new motorcoaches to be equipped with seat belts
DOT estimates that installing lap/shoulder seat belts on new motorcoaches would save approximately 1 to 8 lives and prevent 144 to 794 injuries per year. DOT estimates that installing lap/shoulder seat belts on new motorcoaches would save approximately 1 to 8 lives and prevent 144 to 794 injuries per year. The NHTSA is seeking public comment on the proposal for the next 90 days. A copy of the entire report is available online.
http://www.nhtsa.gov/staticfiles/rulemaking/pdf/NPRM_Belts_on_motorcoaches.pdf
Tags: seat belt law for busses, seat belt mandate for motorcoaches | Posted under Latest News, Transportation | No Comments
Travel Spending Growth Outpaces Economy in General
Last Updated on Tuesday, 20 July 2010 05:54 Written by lgtadmin Tuesday, 20 July 2010 05:52
The U.S. Department of Commerce just announced that real spending (adjusted for changes in price) on travel and tourism increased at an annual rate of 3.9 percent in the first quarter of 2010, following a decrease of 1.5 percent (revised) in the fourth quarter of 2009. By comparison, real gross domestic product (GDP) increased 2.7 percent in the first quarter of this year after increasing 5.6 percent in the fourth quarter of last year.
• Real Tourism Spending. Real spending on traveler accommodations increased 11.0 percent in Q1 2010 after declining 7.9 percent in Q4 2009. Spending on passenger air transportation increased 4.5 percent in Q1 2010 after a decline of 9.8 percent in Q4 2009.
• Tourism & Prices. Prices for passenger air transportation increased for the third straight quarter, rising 13.3 percent in Q1 2010, 36.3 percent in Q4 2009, and 2.4 percent in Q3 2009. Prices for traveler accommodations turned down in Q1 2010, declining 6.4 percent after increasing 3.1 percent in Q4 2009. Overall, average prices of all travel and tourism goods and services rose 3.5 percent in Q1 2010.
• Tourism Employment. Direct travel and tourism employment remained unchanged (0.0%) in Q1 2010 with gains in food services (1.0%) and shopping (1.1%) helping to offset losses in air transportation services (-1.4%) and traveler accommodations (-1.5%).
Source: U.S. Department of Commerce, Bureau of Economic Analysis (June 2010).
Travel and Tourism Satellite Accounts form an indispensable statistical instrument that allows the United States to measure the relative size and importance of the travel and tourism industry, along with its contribution to gross domestic product (GDP).
Approved by the United Nations in March 2002 and endorsed by the U.N. Statistical Commission, TTSAs have become the international standard by which travel and tourism is measured. More than 50 countries around the world have embraced travel and tourism satellite accounting as the only comprehensive, comparable, and credible measure of travel and tourism and its impact on national economies.
For more information on TTSAs, visit www.bea.gov/industry/iedguide.htm#ttsa_ou.
To view the Q1 2010 release in its entirety, visit www.bea.gov/newsreleases/industry/tourism/2010/tour110.htm
Tags: Tourism Growth, Tourism Spending, Travel Industry Growth, Travel Spending | Posted under Latest News, Transportation | No Comments
New Bus Charter Web Site Launches
Last Updated on Sunday, 18 April 2010 03:57 Written by webmaster Thursday, 21 January 2010 04:32
New Technology simplifies way to Search, Compare and Book buses and motorcoaches
Easy Bus Rental makes it easy and cost-effective to access vehicles of all sizes in North America
EasyBusRental.com, in partnership with TravelManager, a software company specializing in the transportation industry, is pleased to launch the beta version of its platform for group transportation. To this date, it has been a challenge to efficiently find vehicles nationwide and to guarantee success on booking the right vehicle and partner. By using the latest technologies available, EasyBusRental.com created an online marketplace to facilitate the process of Searching, Comparing and Booking. (Watch the video interview from ABA.)
Search for Charter Buses:
EasyBusRental.com presents the ease of one-stop shopping and searches over 3,000 bus companies. The technology finds the user the appropriate vehicle based on the geo location of their garages, their vehicle inventory and the customer’s budget.
“From my experiences as a Tour Operator, I know first hand how daunting and time consuming it can be to book buses when you don’t have the right tools or relationships”, says Charles de Gaspe Beaubien, President of EasyBusRental.com. For years the market has been waiting for the bus industry to offer functionality and a user experience similar to other travel web sites. We therefore created an online marketplace to allow the user to make educated decisions and to connect bus operators and customers in a more effective manner. “EasyBusRental.com makes it ‘Easy’ for the consumer and the bus companies”, comments de Gaspe Beaubien.
Search and Compare:
EasyBusRental.com provides rich content and images of the operator’s fleet, whether it is deluxe motocoaches, minibuses, school buses, trolley buses, vans, limousines and more. The web site offers tools to narrow the search results and to “coach” the user in making educated decisions based on fleet sizes, age of the vehicles, preferred vendors, onboard amenities, DOT safety rating, memberships and user generated feedback, as well as price. Users can now base their decision on overall value, as opposed to basing it on price only, which is an overall benefit to the industry not to be commoditized.
Book Bus Charters Online:
EasyBusRental.com is more than a transactional web site. Bookings are supported by a 24/7 customer care center and account managers to guarantee peace of mind and superior service for our customers. The bus companies also have access to the TravelManager technology platform to manage the orders once they have been created and to operate their entire business should they want to.
Benefits:
• Save Time and Money. Let the technology do the work.
• Get the best Value for your budget and travelling experience
• Minimize Risk by working with the best companies
• Expert Advice
• Best Value on every Rental Guaranteed
• MORE Service from your first call until you return from your trip
• MORE Coaches in MORE Destinations. Access to 33,536 Buses in North America
• Peace of Mind and 24/7 Support
• MORE Resources to help plan your Group Experience
• Managed by seasoned executives with Tour Operator background
• Full service guidance with all elements of your groups travel reservations
About Easy Bus Rental, LLC
Headquartered in Gloucester MA, EasyBusRental.com is a privately held company specializing in transportation and unique group travel experiences. EasyBusRental.com is a partnership of like-minded individuals sharing a common vision of creating a marketplace to efficiently execute Motorcoach transactions and providing unique group travel experiences.
About TravelManager
Headquartered in Dublin Ireland, TravelManager is a privately held software company specializing in the Transportation and Motorcoach industry. With a customer base of over 700 companies in 30 different countries, TravelManager provides back office Software with TravelManager, GPS and Real-Time Passenger Information with YouTextus and Website Design and Internet Marketing with uTrackWeb.
Read more: New Bus Charter Web Site Launches
Tags: new bus charter website launches | Posted under Transportation | No Comments
Tech-Savvy Travelers Prefer Buses, Study Says
Last Updated on Tuesday, 22 December 2009 09:09 Written by webmaster Tuesday, 22 December 2009 09:04
The growing availability on intercity buses of access to digital technology “may be a major factor when consumers make their long-distance transportation choices,” according to a new study just released by DePaul University’s Chaddick Institute for Metropolitan Development.
The high-tech traveler has been a driving force in the continued growth of bus travel, which grew 5.1 percent in 2009, the third straight year bus ridership has surged, according to the DePaul University researchers. “Train traffic has been flat, while airline service declined 7 percent in the past year,” the study reports.
“The prevalence of portable electronics is changing the dynamics of how we make travel choices,” said Dr. Joseph P. Schwieterman, director of the Chaddick Institute and the study’s author. “For many passengers, the ability to freely use portable technology on a bus” is “providing a new incentive” to go by bus.
The study found that, in contrast, “on airlines, the rollout of Wi-Fi this year has been met with lackluster demand — which some believe is due to high fees and the inconvenience of having to shut down computers and other devices for substantial periods of time during the beginning and end of flights. The study found that no more than 18 percent of airline travelers use portable electronic devices at any given point in a trip.”
“The latest findings of academic experts further corroborate the trend of more travelers choosing to take the bus,” said American Bus Association President & CEO Peter J. Pantuso. “Technological access while traveling is a growing consumer demand, and the motorcoach industry is winning new riders every day.”
Chaddick researchers surveyed more than 6,000 passengers traveling through 14 states in recent weeks to observe the prevalence of their tech use while riding. “At any given point in the trip, nearly 40 percent of passengers on new Wi-Fi equipped buses are using some form of portable technology,” the academic experts wrote.
The full study can be accessed online at www.las.depaul.edu/chaddick. For more information on the bus boom, visit the ABA website at www.buses.org.
Read more: Tech-Savvy Travelers Prefer Buses, Study Says
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Philadelphia Museum of Art Web Poll
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