More Wasted Money

[trainman8119]

Why is the CTA adding more cameras to buses when they have 4-6 already on board.

Taking pics of drivers is not going to prevent accidents. I am sure the security cams

on the buses can more than adequately be used for anything that could be beneficial.

If not, reposition them. My oh my....why is it these clowns keep spending money when

they supposedly don't have it to spend. And if they are going doomsday, why bother

worrying if a driver hits a curb or not !!!!!

[geneking7320]

Admittedly, I have not read the full story so the answer to my question my lie therein. Unlike Ms. McCollum (who appears in the Tribune story) my experience has been that most CTA buses I've ridden are driven safely (although at times too slow for me). Will this new camera system record external causes of driver actions, ie when someone cuts off a bus and causes a panic stop?

[RIPTA42]

The only purpose the cameras would seem to serve would be to catch bus operators on cell phones. As for the "black box" data, I'll second what Gene said. How many jerks and swerves are because a car cut off the bus, or a pedestrian ran out in front of it? What about jerky motion caused by the bus itself? None of this would be taken into account, because the data would be analyzed by a third party and reported back to the CTA as a "risk score." It will end up costing a lot more than $2 million, too, because the result will be overly cautious bus operators, increased running times, and reduced ridership.

[qwantae]

Its rediculous, They putting more cameras on Buses, while Trains needs them so bad. Why doesnt the train cars have them? Its getting pretty scary riding them, especially at night.

[CircleSeven]

They need to have those cameras constantly on in case if drivers be sneaky and switch themselves (go off route) when there's no passengers around. Some drivers do that though.

[rmadisonwi]

I don't think these cameras have a large enough disk to save that much data (i.e. showing where a driver went when he was off route). Besides, there are other ways to determine such things.

[RIPTA42]

According to one rider who wrote in to the RedEye, it will make the buses run on schedule because operators will no longer be able to stop mid-route for coffee and doughnuts. Except, if the bus is stopped, it won't save data, right?

[Guest]

According to one rider who wrote in to the RedEye, it will make the buses run on schedule because operators will no longer be able to stop mid-route for coffee and doughnuts. Except, if the bus is stopped, it won't save data, right?

What you certainly will see is a reduction of driver complaints. These cameras will also record sound just as the MDT boxes do.

So I think those bus drivers with the "attitudes" will have to finally check themselves.

[Guest]

According to one rider who wrote in to the RedEye, it will make the buses run on schedule because operators will no longer be able to stop mid-route for coffee and doughnuts. Except, if the bus is stopped, it won't save data, right?

The readers who write to RedEye complaining about poor CTA service are a bunch of idiots. They compain about everything, but stopping for doughnuts! thats not one of the causes for buses being late. These readers are such idiots. If an operator has extra time before his scheduled run or maybe he is on a break because they do get them! Then they stop for something to munch on. The last thing a CTA bus operator wants to be is, Late!

[geneking7320]

They need to have those cameras constantly on in case if drivers be sneaky and switch themselves (go off route) when there's no passengers around. Some drivers do that though.

Doesn't CTA have a GPS tracking system that can serve that function presently?

[Busjack]

As the article indicated, the real question is whether the cameras will deter enough accidents, which are now costing the CTA $19 million a year in personal injury settlements. Then it will be worth the money. The cell phone, donut, and off route comments are just diversions.

Of course, as indicated by reports about the police cameras, the question is whether they deter anything, or just make it easier to investigate once the incident happens.

[RIPTA42]

An external camera would probably be more useful if the idea is to assist in accident investigations.

[RIPTA42]

The readers who write to RedEye complaining about poor CTA service are a bunch of idiots. They compain about everything, but stopping for doughnuts! thats not one of the causes for buses being late. These readers are such idiots. If an operator has extra time before his scheduled run or maybe he is on a break because they do get them! Then they stop for something to munch on. The last thing a CTA bus operator wants to be is, Late!

According to RedEye readers who nomited the 8-Halsted the worst bus route, bus bunching is caused by either "five-plus No. 8 buses and drivers just hanging out up at Broadway and Halsted in a parking lot" or "buses scared to travel alone."

[Busjack]

Reading the RedEye, it looks as though CTA5750 was correct about them. Undoubtedly, the reasons are those stated by PR Wanda, plus it is a long route that starts from the south end. Jaclyn doesn't say if the 5 northbound buses were well spaced, and, of course doesn't take into account that they may have become bunched on the northbound trip from wherever she was waiting to Broadway, instead of just sitting in the terminal.

Also note that all the complainers are from Wrigleyville or Lakeview (no difference). Nobody from the South Side.

This brings me to reasonable ways of dealing with the problem. While I have advocated better service control using gps, maybe something else what should be done (and I have read persons on other forums advocate) is to cut the long routes such as 8 and 9 into smaller ones. For instance, Halsted could be split at the UIC Blue Line station. Again, I'm pretty sure the Lakeview residents aren't riding into Bridgeport or Englewood. Similarly, with the X9, Ashland locals could be split at the Orange Line station (sort of like Damen) or at the Division-Milwaukee Blue Line station (maybe both) with the X9 taking the through riders. It may be close to impossible to maintain schedule on routes that run from 79th or 95th (103rd in rush hour) to Irving Park.