ZF’s Advanced Driver Assistance System for Buses and Coaches
Safeguarding Every Journey
Safer bus travel in the city and countryside
City buses and coaches play a significant role in public transportation, especially in urban and suburban areas. Road safety for buses and coaches is therefore essential for people's mobility. Advanced Driver Assistance Systems (ADAS) provide better and more effective support for city bus and coach drivers. They help in providing warnings, automatically improving the vehicle's stability and steerability or, if necessary, taking control of the driving situation itself, for example in the event of an emergency braking.
Assistance systems can prevent or mitigate the impact of serious accidents involving city buses and coaches. As a result, they are becoming mandatory in an increasing number of countries. In the EU, for example, the General Safety Regulations (GSR) make technologies such as blind spot detection, collision warning and tire pressure monitoring systems mandatory for new vehicles. With ZF technology, bus manufacturers worldwide can comply with the legal safety regulations with integrated safety system solutions. ZF contributes to making passenger transport in and around cities safer and more reliable.
ADAS Technology for buses and coaches
ZF Supports Customers with GSR Compliance
Driver assistance systems are essential in enhancing safety and minimizing the risk of accidents in public transportation, including buses and coaches. As these technologies become mandatory in an increasing number of countries, ensuring compliance is crucial for operators. Within the European Union, the General Safety Regulations (GSR) mandate the inclusion of critical safety features such as blind spot detection, collision alerts, and tire pressure monitoring in all new registered vehicles.
ZF is dedicated to supporting bus and coach manufacturers and operators meet GSR standards, with a strong focus on improving safety through advanced driver assistance systems (ADAS). The GSR ADAS Suite is designed to detect vehicles, pedestrians, and cyclists, providing timely alerts to drivers about potential collisions— especially in blind spots, a common concern in urban and crowded environments. Beyond regulatory compliance, ZF is advancing safety innovation. The latest generation of OnGuardMAX can autonomously apply brakes during initial vehicle movement or when making tight turns, ensuring greater safety for vulnerable road users.
Tailored to Complex Urban Environments
Compared to other vehicles, City buses are carrying unprotected seated and standing passengers without wearing a seat belt. During an emergency braking, they can easily be jolted and put off-balance, leading to possible injuries. In addition, the complex and highly dynamic urban traffic environment makes it difficult to implement.
ZF developed City Bus CMS, a collision mitigation system, to better protect unsecured bus passengers from injury during braking maneuver. It is the industry’s first OE-independent Collision Mitigation System tailored to city bus applications. It represents a major step in enhancing bus safety. The system reacts to vehicles as well as bicycles and pedestrians. During a braking maneuver, the CMS system initially applies a jerk brake with a strong gradient but limited intensity. A stronger partial braking is only applied after approximately one second. This alerts passengers and gives them time to grab a handhold or take other securing actions. It helps better protect unsecured bus passengers during braking maneuvers.