Metrobus deploys AI-powered bus safety system in Mexico City

Metrobus, operator of Mexico City’s bus rapid transit (BRT) network has reduced driver risk events by 81 per cent after deploying an AI-powered safety system.

To help improve road safety, Metrobus partnered with Optibus to deploy MagicEye, an AI-native vision system that detects driver fatigue and distraction in real time and alerts both drivers and dispatchers instantly.

Bus-based public transportation systems

Mexico City’s BRT network is one of the largest bus-based public transportation systems in Latin America, connecting 94 million passengers a year across seven lines and more than 280 stations.

Since 2022, Metrobus has recorded more than 5,200 crashes, with driver fatigue and distraction identified as leading contributors, compounded by ongoing workforce shortages affecting its 2,200 drivers.

Metrobus needed a way to prevent incidents proactively, rather than simply reacting after they occurred, while respecting driver concerns about privacy and new monitoring technology.

“The real-time AI insights from MagicEye are helping us to create safer journeys for passengers and healthier working conditions for drivers”

Metrobus deployed Optibus MagicEye, part of the Optibus Control suite, across 792 buses. Using high-resolution, driver-facing cameras, the AI-native system detects microsleep and phone use, issuing instant in-cab alerts to drivers and notifying Metrobus’s control centre in real time.

To preserve driver trust, MagicEye flags behavioural patterns without retaining video footage, while Optibus’s cloud-native infrastructure keeps data secure.