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VTA Provides Earthquake Safety Guidelines on System
Procedures in Place to Protect Passengers During Emergency
| Release Number: | nr 09 10 04 |
| Release Date: | Oct 15, 2009 |
San Jose, Calif. – With the 20th anniversary of the Loma Prieta earthquake approaching this Saturday, the Santa Clara Valley Transportation Authority (VTA) would like to highlight some safety guidelines should an earthquake occur while passengers are on board a VTA bus or light rail vehicle.
“VTA’s first priority after experiencing an earthquake is the safety of our passengers and employees in transit,” said VTA General Manager Michael T. Burns. “We have set up safety procedures during an emergency and have a recovery plan in place to quickly bring service back online.”
During an earthquake, both light rail and bus operators are required to either stop immediately or to cautiously proceed to a safe area and stop. They will remain there until otherwise directed by VTA’s Operation Control Center (OCC), a communication hub for VTA’s entire bus and light rail system.
All VTA operators are in radio communication with the agency’s OCC and will share information on evacuating safely; light rail operators carry detailed evacuation instruction cards. Passengers are asked to remain calm and listen for instructions.
Operators will use the public address system within vehicles to provide up-to-date information to passengers. Both VTA light rail vehicles and buses have emergency power systems that support an intercom and also emergency lighting.
VTA has also posted signage inside all light rail vehicles and buses detailing how passengers should evacuate the bus or light rail vehicle safely.
To ensure safety, VTA will inspect its light rail system before it resumes operation. Once safety is determined, a light rail vehicle may travel at a restricted speed to the closest station platform. A bus will travel to the nearest stop to drop off passengers.
VTA will provide the latest information on its web site, call center phone system, and send automated text messages (either email or phone) to our customers.
For details on VTA, please contact VTA’s Customer Service Center at (408) 321-2300, TTY for the hearing-impaired only, (408) 321-2330. Or log onto www.vta.org and click on the blue envelope icon to sign-up for VTA bus/light rail email updates.  Go To Top
About VTA
Santa Clara Valley Transportation Authority (VTA) is an independent special
district that provides sustainable, accessible, community-focused transportation options that are innovative, environmentally responsible, and promote the vitality
of our region. VTA is responsible for bus, light rail and paratransit operations; congestion management; specific highway improvement projects; countywide transportation planning and provides these services throughout the county including the cities of Campbell, Cupertino, Gilroy, Los Altos, Los Altos Hills, Los Gatos, Milpitas, Monte Sereno, Morgan Hill, Mountain View, Palo Alto, San Jose, Santa Clara, Saratoga and Sunnyvale. VTA continually builds partnerships to deliver transportation solutions that meet the evolving mobility needs of Santa Clara County
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