After initial buy-in from the MCAT“ team,” a community outreach forum was scheduled to judge the interest from MCAT customers. Surveys completed by customers confirmed their interest in the stateof-the-art wheelchair securement technology, and the potential benefits of the pilot program. The MCAT team then involved their Public Works Department leadership; and from that point forward, it was clear that everyone involved favored a six-month Field Evaluation Pilot Program.
“ Prior to the installation, Q’ Straint demonstrated the QUANTUM equipment to the MCAT ridership at the Downtown Bradenton Transit Station,” says Mitch Drouillard, southern regional manager for Q’ Straint and Sure-Lok.“ Educating the community about the benefits of rear-facing wheelchair securement and how QUANTUM is beneficial to everyone riding the bus, is critical. The Q’ Straint team also provided extensive on-site education and training to address any potential MCAT operations issues or questions, before the QUANTUM pilot is underway, and the securement system is utilized in service delivery.”
“ The entire process, from the initial presentation to the completed QUANTUM system installation, took approximately three months,” says William Steele, Manatee County’ s transit division manager.“ This fast pace is a testament to both Manatee County Government and Q’ Straint, as all parties took the pilot program very seriously, and everyone agreed that it is important to gauge the impact of this technology in service delivery operations.”
The systems in action
QUANTUM by Q’ Straint is transit’ s first fully-automatic rear-facing wheelchair securement station. Passengers back their wheelchairs or scooters into the system, press a button and independently secure themselves. QUANTUM’ s side-arm lowers and hugs the wheel, safely
QUANTUM’ s side-arm lowers and hugs the wheel, safely securing the wheelchair with minimal operator assistance.
securing the wheelchair with minimal operator assistance. If the passenger is not able to push the occupant button independently, the bus operator can push the button located on the dash – securing or releasing the passenger without leaving the driver’ s seat.
At right: Q’ POD is the industry’ s first fully integrated forward-facing wheelchair securement station specifically designed and tested for transit wheelchair passenger transportation.
OCTOBER 2018 | BUSRIDE. COM | 15