**2. Accessibility analysis of children carriages in urban busses**

The compatibility between the different market typologies of ChC with the different urban busses designs requires the analysis of some habitability parameters, such as ChC dimensions (maximum and minimum gauges of the folded and unfolded ChC) and constructive characteristics of urban busses (dimensions in the passenger compartment, number and location of accessible doors).

Based on results obtained in the development of the ASUCAR project, these constructive parameters were defined with some clarity in previous research [12]. In the aforementioned work, two transport configurations of the ChC inside the vehicle were determined: those configurations in which the ChC is folded and those in which it is used unfolded. When the ChC is used folded inside the vehicle, the child will travel in the arms of a companion or in a special seat for the children's transportation, if there is one installed on the bus (**Figure 3A**); in that case, the ChC is transported as a luggage. To do this, a special area inside the cabin must be enabled so that folded ChC can be deposited as if they were luggage; thus preventing unwanted maneuvering of the vehicle could cause discomfort or damage to other passengers. There is, however, the possibility of transporting the folded ChC in an inappropriate place inside the vehicle (**Figure 3B**), where, in case of sudden movements due to unusual maneuvers of the vehicle, the carriage instability can cause inconvenience to other passengers.

In the case of ChC being transported unfolded in the vehicle, it is usual for the child to travel inside, and in that situation the ChC is used as a motor vehicle seat. **Figure 4A** shows an example of good transport configuration, in which the carriage is located occupying the space reserved for the WhCh, oriented in a rearwardfacing direction with the backrest attached to the back restraint. However, it is also common to find incorrect situations in which the carriage occupies the space

**Figure 3.**

*Configuration of transport for the ChC folded in public transportation busses: (A) with the ChC folded in a reserved space, (B) with the ChC folded in a space not reserved for transport (source: EMT Madrid).*

#### **Figure 4.**

*Configuration of transport for the ChCs unfolded in public transportation busses: (A) example with the ChC unfolded in the space reserved for the WHCH, (B) example with the ChC unfolded with the space reserved for the WHCH occupied by a companion (source: EMT Madrid).*

reserved for the WhCh facing rearward, with a companion touching the back restraint instead of the ChC (**Figure 4B**). This problem occurs as a result of ignorance or misinformation from the users and operators, which do not have internal standards or codes of good practice that regulate the conditions in which this type of mobility must occur.

Finally, in the study conducted by [9, 13, 14], the maximum and minimum dimensional gauges corresponding to more than 150 types of ChC were determined, both in the folded and unfolded configurations. The values obtained allowed to define the most extreme gauges from the dimensions measured on the up-to-date market ChC. These gauges were classified according to the type of carriage to be used, as stroller, twin chair, or tandem. For defining these gauges, two facts in the use of these products were also being considered:


During the development of the ASUCAR project, up to 77 models of continuous low-floor busses interiors were analyzed, representing the majority of large capacity urban accessible vehicles to transport ChC [13]. The objective of this analysis was based on determining which configurations of accessible vehicles to WhCh minimum and maximum dimensions of the front and rear bus aisles, the number of access doors and the length of space reserved for WhCh of the vehicle, and the number of referenced WhCh which fit in it were established—1200 mm length, 700 mm width, and 1350 mm height [11, 15].

To determine if the ChC is dimensionally compatible with the different lowfloor busses designs, a comparative analysis was carried out between the maximum gauges obtained for the deployed carts. **Figure 5** shows the maximum and minimum gauges obtained for unfolded (A) and folded (B) carriages, respectively. This study was intended to verify if an occupied ChC could circulate deployed from *Passive Safety of Children Carriages on Busses DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.5772/intechopen.90613*

**Figure 5.**

*Maximum and minimum gauges of the (A) unfolded and (B) folded ChCs [12–14].*

the front door to the area reserved for WhCh, or if it should do so from the central door. Also, the maximum number of ChC that could be located in the area reserved for the ChC was determined. The results of the comparative study are shown in [13] and can be summarized as follows:

	- If the space reserved for WhCh is not occupied, a deployed ChC can be placed in the longitudinal direction, or two ChC in the transverse direction.
	- If the space reserved for WhCh is occupied, there is only one possible configuration in which a WhCh can travel simultaneously with a ChC in the longitudinal direction.
	- If the reserved space for WhCh was unoccupied, one or two ChCs deployed in the longitudinal direction, or up to four ChCs in the transverse direction, can be placed.
	- If the reserved space is occupied by only one WhCh, a WhCh and a ChC can be traveled simultaneously in the longitudinal direction, or the WhCh and two ChCs in the transverse direction.
	- If the reserved space is occupied by two WhChs, no ChC deployed inside the vehicle can be moved.
