of New York Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) is looking for possible way remove the physical rearview mirror as a Modern methods to reduce bus maintenance costs and legal settlement from collisions, officials said this week. Rearview mirrors on city buses are huge these days, if you’ve never noticed.
In case you lost it:
According to the MTA, 25 percent of all bus crashes involve the bus’s outside rearview mirror. Mirrors can be a threat on busy streets, crashing into other vehicles, power poles, and curbside eateries. Each of the 1,800 crashes means possible downtime for maintenance and legal damages. The best course of action for the shipping agency is to find a method to completely remove the mirror.
Rich Davey, New York City Transportation President, outlined the idea at MTA . monthly board meeting earlier this week. He tell amNY, “The electronic mirror is basically a backup camera. It’s actually a video of the sides of the bus, if you will, and if you notice, our mirror actually sticks out a bit. What we’ve found, especially with the proliferation of dining structures in the city, is that our mirrors just bump into more inanimate objects.”
The e-mirror is just one of many solutions the MTA is considering to meet Governor Kathy Hochul’s goal of reducing the agency’s annual operating budget by $400 million. Digital cameras also provide drivers with better visibility around the bus. Davey also hopes it will allow bus cockpits to be better enclosed to protect drivers from potential attacks. Expected MTA to start equipping buses with electronic mirrors by the end of this year.
