Bedfordshire-based family-owned bus operator Grant Palmer Ltd is using new ticket machine technology to avoid incidents where its buses strike low bridges, thereby improving safety for road users, rail users and bus passengers.
Following a sustained period of business expansion, Grant Palmer has doubled the number of double decker buses within its fleet. Its senior leadership team has simultaneously taken the decision to upgrade ticket machines with a new ticketer low bridge alert system, which provides drivers with visual and audio alerts to signal that they are approaching a low bridge.
The system works across the Grant Palmer network which stretches across Bedfordshire, Northamptonshire, Hertfordshire and Buckinghamshire. With both the Thameslink and East Midlands Railway networks running across the operating area, there are a significant number of low bridges in the vicinity which pose a safety risk for large buses that may attempt to traverse them.
Thomas Manship, commercial manager for Grant Palmer Limited, commented: “With the new academic year underway, the number of double decker buses in service has more than doubled in the past two years. We adopted the ticketer system in 2020 and have been pleased with the machines and back-office functionality.
“Bridge strikes put rail users, bus passengers and motorists at risk of serious injury. I’m pleased that this new functionality will help us to maintain our record as one of the county’s safest operators.”
