East Midlands bus operator Trentbarton has installed Wheely-Safe safety technology across its entire bus fleet following in-depth trials.
The bus operator has fitted Wheely-Safe’s external TPMS sensors, which replace the valve cap on every tyre, alongside a pair of wheel loss and temperature sensors on every wheel.
The sensors auto-pair with a solar receiver mounted on the windscreen that alerts the driver of any issues.
Wheely-Safe has also held training workshops with Trentbarton’s in-house technicians and depot managers, demonstrating how to correctly install and utilise the system. Drivers have also received training on understanding the different levels of alerts and what action should be taken.
They will operate on Trentbarton’s services in Nottinghamshire, Derbyshire and Leicestershire.
Jeff Counsell, Managing Director at Trentbarton, said: “It’s the only product in the industry that can identify when a wheel nut is beginning to loosen mid-journey, as well as supplying crucial data on tyre pressures and a temperature warning system that alerts us to any potential brake or hub issues, so that we can react accordingly and prevent any unnecessary downtime.
“As a public transport operator, the safety of our passengers and other road users is top of our list of priorities. Over the years there has been many cases of wheel loss within the wider industry, and the prevailing factor for most of those incidents has been human failure. It remains a massive issue in the industry, so to have a system to prevent that installed on every single one of our buses is fantastic.
“We have 400 vehicles out on the road, some doing up to 300 miles every day, so to know there’s a system constantly monitoring the health of the tyre and wheel gives us real peace of mind.”
Steve Jackson, Managing Director at Wheely-Safe, added: “As one of our early adopters, Trentbarton has had several years to test and trial our patented sensor technology and we are delighted they have now opted to protect the whole fleet.”
