Background and Objectives: city bus drivers, during driving, are always exposed to the whole body
vibration. This can lead to central- neural, musculoskeletal, and blood
circulation disorders and develop occupational diseases due to vibration. The
objective of this descriptive- analytic study is to investigate Tehran bus drivers&apos
exposure to the whole body vibration.
Materials and Methods: We measured parameters related to the whole body vibration, such as
acceleration of the frequency weighted root sum of squares, the overall
equivalent acceleration, vibration dose value, and crest factor were measured
separately at three directions (X, Y, Z) in 80 buses in 5 different types,
which were selected randomly. The results obtained were compared with ISO 2631:
1997 Standard, and finally permitted driving time was calculated for different
buses.
Results: Acceleration
of the frequency weighted root mean of squares at X, Y axes in all of the buses
was below the district of health warning and at Z axis, it was in the district
of health warning, while the overall equivalent acceleration in Icarus buses
was above the district of health warning and in other buses it was in the
district of health warning according to standard ISO 2631: 1997. Vibration dose
value (VDV) was less than 8.5 and crest factor was less than 9 and in all of
the buses, it was less than the suggested permitted limits of ISO 2631: 1997 standard.
Moreover, permitted driving time was estimated less than 8 hours per day and
Icarus buses had the most and Man buses had the least vibration acceleration,
crest factor, and vibration dose value respectively.
Conclusion: According
to the results obtained, there is the possibility of developing potential
health risks in bus drivers therefore, it is recommended that the health and
safe managers consider decrease of working hours and increase of rest time
while purchasing new buses.
