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A bump in the rate of bus accidents over the last nine months has induced Amtran to bring additional safety efforts to bear.
There have been 16 preventable accidents during that period, most involving a still object like a sign or parked car, according to CEO Josh Baker, who talked about the issue this week, after sharing the organization's first-quarter statistical dashboard.
The effort has involved an analysis of crash data, a mentoring program and a safety performance newsletter, according to Baker and Deputy CEO Michele Barnes.
The analysis of crash data back to 1998 showed that accidents are most common during the first five years of a driver's career, and are also most common in January and February, Barnes said.
The mentoring program involves more experienced drivers helping newer ones, as a supplement to the work of regular driver trainers, Baker said.
The Amalgamated Transit Union local has cooperated in making those more experienced drivers available, Baker said.
There are plans to redouble efforts to focus drivers' attention on safety when next winter comes, according to Barnes.
There was also a recent precision driving exercise, although it wasn't set up specifically to counter the recent rash of accidents, said Director of Transportation Don Gallice.
Amtran uses remedial training and a progressive discipline protocol in connection with preventable accidents.
The remedial training is generally effective, according to Baker.
Training is designed to enhance drivers' awareness of the sort of space the 35-foot buses require on turns and otherwise, according to Baker.
Training is also designed to familiarize drivers with the "geography" of the routes they'll be working on, Baker said.
The progressive discipline protocol moves from verbal warning to written warning to one level of suspension, to a second level of suspension to dismissal, according to Baker.
The organization works to avoid the need for dismissal, he said.
Workers can appeal steps in the process, but rarely do that, Baker said.
The steps are applied within a rolling 12-month lookback period, such that incidents prior to the beginning of that period go away.
Non-preventable accidents -- as when a bus is rear-ended while stopped at a red light -- don't result in disciplinary action for drivers, although they can lead to additional training, when an analysis of the incident shows that a driver might have done something to reduce the likelihood of a crash, such as better positioning the bus, Baker said.
Amtran management could consult PennDOT's local District 9 office for suggestions on accident prevention, as PennDOT deals with the issue of crashes too, said board member Larry Bilotto, a PennDOT retiree.