Journeo has announced that Nottingham City Transport (NCT) is the first UK bus operator to retrofit the supplier’s digital Camera Monitoring System (CMS) to its fleet in place of conventional wing mirrors.
The company has marked the retrofit as a watershed moment for the technology and the 21st Century solution, as it allows operators to deploy the system both to existing vehicles as well as new ones.
The installation with NCT further allows consistency in system quality and driver familiarisation, and allows Journeo’s nationwide engineering team to manage all systems under one support and maintenance contract.
The Journeo CMS uses cameras connected to monitors inside the driver’s cab. Journeo says it improves visibility in all conditions, including at 
night, bright sunlight, and heavy rain, while giving the driver a clearer view and removing blind spots.
The cameras’ diminutive size also reduced the risk of collision with pedestrians, other road users and objects such as bus stops and trees – Journeo reports users have seen a 60% reduction in accident costs and almost 40% in maintenance costs.
“We are determined to make our transport network as safe as possible for passengers and other road users and this project is an important step in achieving this,” says Liam O’Brien, Head of Engineering at NCT. “As with any significant change to a vehicle, there are a lot of processes to go through. 21st Century’s support in helping us navigate the legal procedures has been invaluable.”
Adds Mark Johnson, Director of Fleet Systems at 21st Century: “As a UK first this is an exciting project. While CMS is mandated on all new buses in London, Liam and the Nottingham City Transport team are proving that operators outside the capital can add this important safety technology to their existing vehicles. Because of the huge safety benefits that it brings, we are determined to support the industry to roll out this technology wider.
“Our understanding of homologation processes for new and existing vehicles is second-to none and, with a nationwide engineering team, we can help any operator roll out these solutions seamlessly.”
