Penticton city buses getting closed circuit cameras

PENTICTON – Penticton transit buses are about to become more secure as the City begins the implementation of cameras.

Phased installation of closed circuit cameras on 10 of the city’s B.C. Transit buses began last week, according to a City of Penticton media release.

Medium and heavy-duty buses built after 2005 will have the cameras installed and new buses 27 feet and longer will be delivered with cameras factory installed, the City says.

The cost to equip 10 buses in Penticton is estimated at $36,400, with the city picking up 17 per cent of the project cost. The provincial and federal governments will joint fund the remainder. Signs will be installed in buses that have the video hardware installed.

Each bus will have up to five cameras installed, with full coverage of the interior, the outside front of the bus and two cameras dedicated to external views. Video coverage will be kept for seven days.

The move comes on the heels of a one-year evaluation of cameras installed on 83 buses in Victoria and another 25 in Kamloops. According to B.C. Transit, 1,400 incidents were recorded between April 2015 and April 2016 during the pilot program of which 500 were fully investigated. Five assaults and 61 liability claims resulted from the investigations.

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