Every three years, APTA EXPO convenes the largest and longest-standing international trade show for the public transportation industry. Last held in 2021 amid pandemic delays, the conference was still eight thousand attendees strong. This year promises even more opportunities to learn and connect and is expected to be the largest EXPO since 2017.

As ever, the EXPO’s focus will remain on solutions that build, improve, and safeguard the public transit rider experience. In keeping with the EXPO theme, FAAC’s own Jason Francisco will be on hand to answer questions and showcase simulation-based workforce development tools that prepare transit operators for passenger interaction, conflict de-escalation, and assault awareness and prevention. Jason and the FAAC team will have a full MB2000 bus operator training simulator up and running at the APTA EXPO, ready to put you in the driver’s seat with the latest in immersive passenger interaction training solutions.

MB2000 and Its Bus Operator Human Interaction Training

The baseline MB2000 simulator fully replicates what the metro transit environment bus operators will experience in real life, under all kinds of weather, driving, and operational conditions, and with any type of transit vehicle (including electric or other “ZEB” zero-emission buses and paratransit as well).

Every MB2000 features an actual bus dashboard, side instrument panel, and driver’s seat configuration. This authentic attention to detail gives students the feeling of being behind-the-wheel for better engagement during training, ensuring deeper learning and retention. Real mirrors provide additional training opportunities for coping with parallax, leading to improved backing, lane clearing, and blind spot management. TrueFeel Steering delivers a more realistic “feel” for force feedback, camber recovery, tire scrub, curb strikes, and road vibration. And Doppler effect surround sound enhances the realism of simulated brake application, acceleration, deceleration, and cornering. Every MB2000 now includes special features unique to battery electric bus vehicle models.

Any FAAC MB 2000 simulator can also be outfitted with Transit Response, a training simulator for passenger interaction that uses the same proven platform that first responders use for “stress inoculation.”. Through a series of prompts, the student must use critical thinking skills,  sound judgment and agency policy to resolve situations that can have several different outcomes. Each response puts the operator on the path to a successful resolution, or a powerful lesson learned. Best of all, scenarios can be created to address issues specific your agency.   Students training with Transit Response will be ready—practically and emotionally—to safely defuse conflict with public transportation passengers while complying with your agency’s policies and procedures.

As Jason Francisco points out, “The location that the driver experiences Transit Response from is what makes it so powerful – their seat. Whatever the situation, there’s a natural human inclination to stand up and ‘take charge.’ But that’s one thing a transit operator is instructed not to do. With Transit Response, you are addressing whatever it is—a medical emergency, a fight, an agitated passenger, an accident—right from the seated position. That has a lot of inherent value in giving the operator a first look at some of these situations before the real world boards the bus.”

Come See Us at Booth #2711

Interested in learning about new strategies for bus operator human interaction training? Come chat with Jason and FAAC’s specialists at Booth #2711, October 9-11. They’re eager to share their experience and expertise in using simulation to defuse and de-escalate passenger conflict, improve customer experience, and raise assault awareness and prevention for transit operators.

Can’t make it to Orlando this year, but still want to know more about training for your passenger conduct policies? Get in touch with us today.