Video Compilation Of Near-Misses With Madison Buses Released To Promote Pedestrian, Bicyclist Safety

Madison city officials are sharing a compilation of bus surveillance video with the public in an effort to make the streets safer.

The on-bus camera shows close calls between buses and pedestrians and bicyclists during the last three years. The video includes some near-misses but no major injury crashes. The video shows different incidents: There’s a skateboarder “threading the needle” by weaving in between lanes of traffic; a man gets clipped by a bus mirror when he walks in the vehicle’s path without looking; and bicyclist who is pedaling while using a phone on a busy downtown street.

Chuck Kamp, the Madison Metro Transit general manager, said he wants everyone to share the road, follow the rules and pay attention.

“Our No. 1 issue that we’re seeing is with electronic distractions. So, there’s a lot of emphasis on that driving a car, but that also applies to bus drivers, bicyclists and pedestrians,” Kamp said.

City officials are also trying to be pedestrian- and bike-friendly while accommodating buses and cars. They said this can sometimes create unsafe situations.

Madison Police Officer Ray Rahaman said last year, 111 of the city’s more than 5,000 traffic crashes involved cyclists. Two of the incidents were fatal.

“(About) 85 percent of those crashes occurred within 100 feet of an intersection. Regarding at-fault, 32 percent of the time, bicyclists were at fault and 68 percent (of the time) motor vehicle operators were at fault,” Rahaman said.

There were 91 vehicle crashes involving pedestrians last year. Rahaman said that in 42 percent of those cases, pedestrians were at fault and in 55 percent of the incidents, drivers did something wrong.

For its part, Madison Metro officials have installed audible turn signals and tried to reduce a driver’s blind spot with higher mounted mirrors. The changes came after a 2011 crash in which a bus driver hit and killed a pedestrian. No charges were filed.