RATP Dev is leaning on its long international experience and innovative mindset to ensure its networks operate safely.
Everyone deserves the right to move around with peace of mind. It’s a philosophy at the core of RATP Dev, one of the world’s leading public transport operators.
Running and maintaining tens of thousands of kilometres of metro, bus, tram, and rail lines around the globe, the company puts security and safety first, aiming to prevent accidents and incidents and reduce their consequences, improving its solutions through innovation and lessons learned over decades in the industry.
Safety takes precedence over all other considerations, said RATP Dev Australia general manager Denis Masure.
As RATP Dev prepares for the Sydney Metro-Western Sydney Airport line’s launch, it maintains its commitment to upholding the highest security and safety standards.
Masure highlighted successful strategies it can draw from, including a comprehensive 360-degree security reinforcement plan aimed at instilling confidence in passengers and reducing any feeling of vulnerability.
“We break down security into three pillars of focus to protect passengers across our networks – prevention, protection and intervention,” he said.
“We first seek to reassure passengers to reduce feelings of insecurity through several means. One way is to roll out multifaceted awareness campaigns to educate the general public on the right behaviour to adopt when an incident occurs using posters, local press and digital communications,” he said.
“For instance, we hold talks in schools. In Paris, we taught school children how to travel on the city’s transport network and in September 2023, launched the very first public transport licence for young passengers aged nine to 13 to ensure they were prepared for public transport use.”
In Florence, Italy, RATP Dev raised awareness of violence against women with the ‘Stop and Think’ campaign.
As part of International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women, RATP Dev’s subsidiary launched the second series of the ‘Not a Single Story’ video project in partnership with Florence-based association Nosotras Onlus.
Another tool the organisation has also been developing hand-in-hand with local communities and stakeholders is undertaking exploratory walks to identify any sources that could cause passengers to feel unsafe and has organised trials to reduce such feelings.
“In Paris this meant walking on particular train lines to gather passenger feedback on the measures implemented to combat feelings of being unsafe,” Masure said.
“We also gathered volunteers to give feedback on a set itinerary and share the level of comfort they felt for each. Itineraries were assessed according to the overall atmosphere of the station; how easy it is to navigate and how facilities are installed and used.”
The teams at RATP Dev continuously strive for innovative, meaningful solutions, leading them to test new ideas, such as installing mirrors and new light arrangements in stations that mimic the sky.
RATP Dev also understands protection is the second essential element of keeping networks safe for those who use them. For this purpose, the company has been working with communities to develop and implement on-demand stops on bus routes and co-walking solutions to enhance passenger safety.
“The on-demand services were rolled out in Paris during evening and night services,” Masure said. “This allows buses to stop between designated stops, at a place which may be closer to a passenger’s residence, minimising walking in the dark.”
The organisation has also implemented joint programs between security, inspection and law enforcement teams. For example, canine units are used to detect explosives and process unattended objects and bags in several stations. Mobile security teams across the network are deployed to respond and intervene quickly where needed. This led to the creation of the Groupement de Protection et de Sécurité des Réseaux – Network protection and security unit (GPSR), whose purpose is to protect, dissuade, assist, and respond as needed. It is part of a regional management policy and was first implemented in Paris then rolled out in other big cities. About 1000 employees are qualified to intervene at all times, after a rigorous 15 week training program.
RATP Dev has turned all this accumulated experience and knowledge into innovative tools, to improve its reaction when faced with unexpected events.
“Our long experience in welcoming large numbers of visitors for big-scale events proves invaluable in ensuring events run smoothly and without incident, such as during the Rugby World Cup,” Masure said.
“We have also worked diligently to incorporate lessons learned from terrorist threats, as our top priority is always to ensure the safety of all passengers on our networks, from international visitors to our teams on the field, from big events to daily commutes.”
RATP Dev identified the importance of intervening effectively in the event of an incident and has implemented facilities that allow victims or witnesses to call for help using call terminals installed at stations and on all trains. A mobile app has also been created for simple reporting, along with an emergency hotline.
In Paris, passengers can also use an alert number by phone or SMS to report delinquent behaviour or a situation that presents a security risk.
Masure said 5,000 call terminals, including 3000 on the metro and RER commuter rail networks, were set up resulting in 11,000 calls between January and September 2022.
While ensuring the security of passengers is paramount, RATP Dev is also working to ensure the network itself is operating to minimise accidents and reduce their consequences, with a relentless focus on improvement and innovation regarding safety.
“Safety is an absolute prerequisite in every decision and action taken as part of RATP Dev’s activities,” he said.
This was evident in London where RATP Dev implemented the Mobileye solution to better alert drivers of imminent collisions.
The Mobileye system uses smart cameras to alert drivers of impending collisions with pedestrians and cyclists in vehicle blind spots. The bus driver receives visual and sound alerts in real time in the case of imminent collision with a pedestrian, cyclist or vehicle; when the distance is too close to the vehicle in front; when speeding, or the bus is deviating from the traffic lane.
RATP Dev London has been testing this solution on a bus line since August 2020.The result was a 37 per cent reduction in the number of faults compared to the year before and a 35 per cent reduction in the total number of incidents for the same period.
“Similar success was seen on Hong Kong’s 120-year-old tramway network,” Masure said.
“The network carries over 200,000 passengers per day on 165 double decker tramcars. RATP Dev has been committed to diligently improve the tram’s braking systems, and created a control centre to regulate traffic. Signalling modifications were made to ensure the trams direction changes were clear to the traffic around them.
“There was an increase in radar speed gun checks on the network, coupled with a system to reduce over-speeding which included driver alerts and archiving of overruns for the management team to consult.
“As a result, the number of speeding violations decreased by 352 in a year for the network.”
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