Transit agencies are re-emphasizing the requirement for safe and efficient transit bus operations. Numerous advanced technologies are candidates for helping transit agencies meet these various objectives. One such technology is driving simulation. If student bus operators can be trained more efficiently using simulation, both training costs and operations costs can be reduced. However, only a handful of transit agencies are using driving simulation, and, even among these agencies, different kinds of simulations are being used. Also, because simulation technology is new and ever changing, transit agencies need guidance on not only whether to use simulation, but also on how and when to use it. Milestone Group, L.L.C prepared this report for TCRP Project A-22. To achieve the project’s objective of producing a set of guidelines that may be to used to assess the need and selection of simulators, the researchers visited transit agencies who are using driving simulators to train bus operators. In addition, the researchers conducted surveys of drivers, trainers, and managers who have used simulators. The researchers made site visits to non-transit users of driving simulators, and visits to and inquiries of transit agency training operations that are not using simulators. The literature review concludes that simulation can work. The site visits and surveys indicate that ground vehicle simulation works. The site visits to and surveys of transit agencies using various simulation systems lead to the conclusion that transit bus operator training can be improved with the selective use of transit bus simulators. (A)
Abstract