Why city buses aren't crash-tested

When an OC Transpo bus collided with a Via Rail train in 2013, the front of the bus was torn off and itsleft side was peeled back like the lid of a sardine tin.

The bus in that collision like the bus inthismonth's fatal crash at Westborostation wasn't required to meet the same crash standards that smaller vehiclesmust meet.

In fact, in Canada, vehicles of that sizearen't crash-tested at all.Government regulations exempt vehicles over 11,793 kilograms from the same crash-testing that smaller vehicles must undergo.

"The primary reason why there are no crash testsis because there hasn't been a real societal need to protect passengers in bus incidents," said JamieCatania, president at crash reconstruction firm 30 Forensic Engineering.

Buses aren't involved in a lot of collisions,Cataniasaid and when they are, passengers "don't normally get injured."

Changes recommended

After the 2013 crash in Barrhaven, the Transportation Safety Board of Canada recommended a number of changes, noting thatbetter bus design may have offered strongerprotection.

"The tearing away of the bus structure ultimately resulted in the driver, the driver station and seat as well as eight passengers and four passenger seats on the upper deckbeing ejected from the bus," the agencywrote in its report in 2015.

The board also found that it didn't require a great deal of force to do all that damage.

"The breakup of the bus front structure did not require considerable impact energy. The front structure was not designed to provide impact protection," it said.

Following the TSB'srecommendations,Transport Canada has beenworking for nearly two years tofind and buy a model bus it could perform crash tests onto come up with its own recommendations,but it's been a complex process.

Transport Canada sets standards for cars, vans and SUVs, dictating how they must perform in front impact, side impact and rollover crashes. There are also rules for school buses,but larger vehicles such as transit buses are exempt.

Heavier vehicles tend to fare better

Catania said busestend to farebetterin collisions because they're usuallythe larger, heavierobject.

"They tend to keep moving when they hit something, as opposed to coming to an abrupt stop," he said.

However,in the 2013 Fallowfieldstation crash, the train that collided with the bus was by far the heavier vehicle. In the Westborostation crash, the bus collided with a steel-framedbus shelter.

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Catania said he understands people will want to see changes after the most recent crash in Ottawa,and said this incident may spur Transport Canada to move faster on new regulations.

"The concern I have is that you can't protect against every single eventuality," Catania said."As horrific as [the Westboro crash]was in Ottawa, two weeks agono one would ever have seen that coming."