Bus drivers are daily exposed to whole-body vibrations (WBV) submitted to risks for develop health problems related to these conditions. Numerous studies focused to quantify and identify the risks that drivers are exposed have been developed in recent years. Many factors influence the transmission of vibration to the body. Road type may be an important factor in determining the WBV exposure a bus driver receives. In urban areas, common types of routes include several road surfaces like: smooth highway, older rough freeway, pavement, bumpy, speed humps, and others.
The purpose of this study was to determine whether different kinds of road surfaces, found in urban routes, cause different WBV responses, and determine the influence for each road type in daily exposure to WBV according the standard ISO 2631-1 (1997).
Two different drivers drove the same urban bus over a route which included three road types: a rougher old freeway, a city street segment with pavement, and a road bumpy segment, characterizing the conditions of most Brazilian cities. To assess vibrations transmitted to the driver, vibration values were recorded using a seat pad accelerometer mounted on the driver's seat.