Although getting passengers to their destinations in an efficient and reliable way is a primary objective for SamTrans, nothing is more important to the bus agency than ensuring the safety of its customers and employees.
The significance of that conviction is reflected by the SamTrans’ Base Safety Awards, a friendly competition between the bus agency’s two operating facilities to see which one can post the best safety statistics.
In 2014, bus drivers operating out of SamTrans’ North Base facility, located in South San Francisco, drove an average of 117,000 miles between preventable accidents, a mark that that topped their comrades in South Base, which is located in San Carlos. Overall, SamTrans’ 305 Bus Operators drove 5,555,069 miles in 2014, with an average of 101,001 miles between preventable accidents.
SamTrans’ North Base facility took home the workplace safety prize, with maintenance employees compiling 61,000 hours with just one lost time to injury. That marked topped the numbers posted by North Base.
“We emphasize safety with the utmost importance here,” said Chuck Harvey, SamTrans’ deputy CEO of operations, engineering and construction. “The outstanding safety records compiled by our maintenance workers and bus operators illustrate just how seriously they view our safety initiatives and goals.”
In 2013, South Base workers took home both safety prizes.
The North Base operators and South Base maintenance employees were presented with an award recognizing their safety achievements at the SamTrans Board of Directors meeting on March 11.