As the world’s leading tire and rubber company and the official tire partner of the Olympic and Paralympic Games, Bridgestone Corporation (Bridgestone) recently announced that it will leverage its extensive tire and material expertise to help the newly built Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games and the Paralympic Athletes Village to introduce a barrier-free bus parking system.
Drawing on its expertise in commercial bus tires and rubber, Bridgestone is working with a joint team in Japan to actively develop a new curb step design to allow for a seamless connection between bus doors and platforms. The new curb design includes a specially designed slope that allows the curb to interface with the tire more snugly to reduce tire sidewall wear and vibration. By adjusting the position of the curb steps, this system can be customized to fit most tires and vehicle sizes, further narrowing the gap between the door and the curb steps, and allowing passengers with limited mobility, including: people with strollers , wheelchair users, and the elderly can safely and conveniently get on and off the bus.
The new barrier-free bus parking system was first launched in Okayama, Japan in June this year, and has also been adopted by the Tokyo Metropolitan Government. The Tokyo Olympic Village and Paralympic Village will be the first demonstration site to set up this system in Tokyo, and it will be completed in February 2020. The system installation included nearly 395 meters of curb steps and was suitable for most tire and vehicle sizes. Bridgestone will continue to cooperate with the Tokyo Metropolitan Government and other regions to promote this technology to more applicable areas and continue to serve the public after the 2020 Tokyo Olympics.
Masaaki Tsuya, Chairman, CEO and Representative Executive Officer of Bridgestone, said: “Since its establishment, Bridgestone has always taken contributing to society as its corporate mission, and is committed to improving people’s mobility, life, work and life. The way to entertain. We have an excellent team of experts in the field of tire and rubber technology, dedicated to solving changing needs and challenges. Through this project, we use our extensive expertise to create advanced solutions for public transportation and other fields. The general public will eliminate travel barriers and improve travel convenience.”
Although Bridgestone does not directly produce or sell this system, it actively participates in and cooperates with Yokohama National University, Japan Transportation Planning Association and Advance Corporation to develop and design this barrier-free bus parking system
As the world’s only Tokyo-based Global Olympic and Paralympic Partner, Bridgestone is proud to provide products, services, solutions and advanced technologies to all involved in the Tokyo 2020 Olympic and Paralympic Games. The Tokyo 2020 Olympic and Paralympic Games is a significant milestone for Bridgestone. At that time, Bridgestone will show the world its cutting-edge technology concepts and continue to transform into a truly global enterprise. Bridgestone will continue to release information about its long-term commitment and contribution to the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games in the coming months.
