In the news: Should school buses have seat belts?

Last month, my 4-year-old son went on his first field trip, with his preschool, to a farm 30 minutes away. How exciting! His first school bus ride.

My enthusiasm fell into uneasiness, though, when I remembered: Massachusetts school buses don’t have seat belts. Picturing the little boy I’d strapped in to his car seat a billion times whizzing down the highway freestyle on a bench seat, I seriously considered driving him myself and meeting the class at the farm. In the end, John took the bus and lived, and I chastised myself for being overprotective.

Then the other day, I saw a news story about hybrid school buses. They can save school districts lots of money on fuel costs, but all I could think was, “Do they have seat belts?” The article mentioned nothing about them.

So what is the deal with school bus seat belts? A quick Google search revealed that, every few months, newspapers around the country ask the same question, often after a school bus crash. A few weeks ago, a Maryland crash injured dozens of kids and prompted a Tuesday editorial in the Philadelphia Daily News that declared, when it comes to the anti-belt research, “something is fishy.”

Rather than seat belts on school buses, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), which establishes federal motor vehicle safety standards, requires “compartmentalization.” This involves small spaces between seats and high, cushioned seat backs, which creates a “protective envelope” that works for children of all sizes.

NHTSA says school buses are about seven times safer than passenger cars or light trucks. According to data it released in May, “The school bus occupant fatality rate of 0.2 fatalities per 100 million vehicle miles traveled (VMT) is considerably lower than the fatality rates for passenger cars or light trucks (1.44 per 100 million VMT).” An average of six school age children die as passengers in school bus accidents each year.

However, another federal agency has raised safety concerns about compartmentalization. In 1999, the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) said that, in rollovers or accidents involving side impact, school bus passengers do not hit the cushioned seat in front of them. Instead, they hit “either another passenger, the side wall, the windows, or the edge of an adjacent seat,” none of which “are designed to absorb impact energy.”

Therefore, NTSB believes that a better “school bus occupant protection system” involving lap/shoulder belts can and should be developed, so that passengers remain in the seating compartment in all types of crashes, including side impacts and rollovers. In addition, NHTSA should require the new system on all new school buses.

Meanwhile, in its May report, the NHTSA advised states to consider the price tag and the reduced seating capacities of buses with seat belts before requiring them. It suggests that the price and capacity issues could lead to more kids not taking the bus and, statistically, that will lead to more kids getting hurt on the way to school.

To me, that sounds like a copout. If new buses with seat belts have fewer seats, then get a few more buses. Not to be cavalier about the budget constraints towns face, but this is our kids. Why is it acceptable that in a side impact crash or roll over, kids will fly about the bus?

At first, the NHTSA statistics comforted me about John’s bus ride. That is, until I read the Guideline for the Safe Transportation of Preschool Age Children in School Buses. Turns out, NHTSA recommends that preschool age children always sit in car seats when traveling in school buses.

I didn’t know that. Did you?

And I’m left wondering, if a bus has no seat belts, what does one use to strap in the preschooler’s car seat?

I think the Philadelphia Daily News editorial says it best: “Is the [anti-belt] research sloppy - or slanted? Whatever the answer, our kids deserve better.”

Kris is a thirtysomething writer and stay-at-home mom who lives north of Boston with her family.

Comments

[Shoulder Bags]

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[Fashion shoes]

Come on dude, these facts* and proof* i mean who is posting* lol :P

[Childrens Accidents]

Accidents are caused not occur. Mostly accident are caused by the driver of the bus trying to avoid collision with another vehicle following their dangerous or careless manoeuvre. Accidents resulting in deaths and serious injuries as like in this case. Seat belts are important for bus passengers. mostly school buses have no seat belts.why?

[Angie]

Dear Kris,
My name is Angie, I am a mother of two precious little girls and a bus drives for over 7 years. I have been recognized as safest driver for all my seven years of service. I read your article and even though it is very accurate and interesting, I have to differ with your point of view. It is true that compartmentalization does not fully protect passengers on a rollover and side-impact collisions, but would love for you to picture this scenario; Your child went to the farm on his first bus ride among another 53 kindergarteners, the bus DO have seat belts.A drunk driver cuts the way of the bus driver and in trying to avoid the impact the bus rollovers. The fuel tank is leaking and now we have 55 students trapped on the bus.There's a very high chance that the bus will catch fire. How do We take all those kids out of the bus? What if they went to a river or lake?
As a bus driver I don't agree with having seat belts on the bus. Besides rollover and side-impact crashes are very rare. We have more front impact and rear-end impact on our buses due to distracted motorist. I believe that money should be spent to increase vigilance for drivers that do not respect a passing school buses. We are cut-off on the road more than 20 times a day! and that is the main cause of accidents. Texting and drunk driving kill more students (and drivers in general) than students with no seat belts on the bus.

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[hannah]

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[2safeschools.org]

Most are unaware that the school bus compartmentalization design implemented in the 1970's was not the engineers’ design but an altered design implemented by school principals and politicians. The original design included seat belts. The excuses asserted for no seat belts in school buses is as old as the arguments asserted against seat belts in cars in the 1950's. The nation's largest auto maker at that time, General Motors, declined to offer belts even as optional equipment. General Motors' "safety engineer," concluded that "seat belts are not essential for safe driving." Finally, with its 1956 model cars, Ford Motor Co. took the lead in offering optional equipment safety belts, as part of an emphasis on vehicle safety in its marketing of that year's new automobiles. Initial public demand for the belts was so high that it exceeded Ford's production plans (NOVA). International Corporation (IC) was the first school bus manufacture to offer seat belts as standard equipment on school buses. 28% of IC's production includes seat belts installed. Over 700 school districts have somehow managed with belts installed on their school buses. Some school districts in states using belts but not mandated include Arizona, Colorado, Connecticut, Georgia, Idaho, Illinois, Massachusetts, Missouri, New Hampshire, Ohio, Oklahoma, Vermont and Virginia. I've driven the big school buses with belts not installed and also some with belts installed. Buses with belts installed are safer for everybody in and outside the bus, and provide safer environments on the bus by far over that of beltless buses, in my opinion. For more about this issue see this link:
http://www.regulations.gov/fdmspublic/ContentViewer?objectId=090000648039f554&disposition=attachment&contentType=pdf

[mandaa.]

i'm writing up a draft of a bill for it to be a law in Massachusetts that school busses develop seat belts.

It saves lifes, and is not a waste of time.

Look at the technology of a rollercoaster. a main board opens the bars/belts all at the same time, and with the same push of a button, all the belts are unleased in unison.

my question then is, why can't this technology be applied to school buses?

I'm in high school, so i know many people are like "Ew seat belts are uncool"

So its cool if a bus is hit from the side and passengers are thrown around the bus and die or are seriously injured?

i dont think so.

[Breanna]

personnaly, as a student, i really dont want seatbelts...i mean...they r soo uncool

[kira hudson]

I am 13 years old and Im with you I'm doing a project on this with buses not having seat belts.My best friend all most died because she was not wereing a seat belt. please email me. thank you p.s.I need to speek with you

[Besa]

I have a question, since it's been so long since I road a bus. Does the bus driver have a seat belt?
And if he does is his life more important than our childrens.And like many of you I have also voued never to let my son ride the even on field trips. I'll take him!

[Michelle]

I started my career life as a social worker. Subsequently, I had children and changed my career to driving a school bus. This has been the most rewarding career I have had. First, as a school bus driver we go through extensive training. It is not the same as getting behind the wheel of your car or full sized van. Everyone in society needs to understand that we cannot justify our decision, on whether seat belts should/should not be used in school buses based on the use of them in regular vehicles. Please understand that a school bus is the safest form of transportation. Busses are made like tanks! As well, busses are equipped with high seats and special padding to protect students from impact. However, the tricky part is getting students to sit properly, so that the seats can protect them if need be. In addition, it would be helpful if parents would be supportive and help to educate children on the importance of properly sitting on a school bus.
Furthermore, the installation of seatbelts could be helpful in minor accidents. On the other hand, what if a major accident occurred? The school district I work for has harnesses for pre-school aged children. If an accident was to occur and we have to evacuate quickly, I would be in trouble! They have four clasps that attach behind the student and it takes a huge amount of precious time to undo them in an emergency. We are told to cut the straps with a razor knife if these situations occur. Although, it is illegal to have a knife on the bus, so where am I supposed to get one? How is a bus driver expected to get 72 children out of a bus safely in an accident? Possibly a better restraint system for a school bus, that doesn't require a knife in a life-threatening situation. However, what if there were several unconscious students or for some other reason not able to undo their safety device? Then the bus driver has to make the decision on which children to save and which to let die. In fact, this is very unfair to the driver and one they will have to suffer with for the rest of their life. I do not know a single bus driver that would want a single hair harmed on any child’s head, bus driver's are here not to simply transport children but to protect them. Would you want your child to be the one left on the bus because the driver didn't have enough time to remove them from a seat belt? My children or yours, I wouldn't want any of them left behind!

[crystal]

i have a 3years old girl and i desided that i will not put her on a school bus untill they get some kind of safybelts for are kids i my sound like a mom that keeps tight on my child yes i do because i love her and i never want too know what it is with out her..i have been out of school for 7years now and i remember atleast 3times there was a bus crash and it has been right in front of the school and i know for a fact some bus driver dont care they go as fast as they want...too me we parents have too have are kids in the seat belts in are cars or we get a ticket why cant it be the same way with are kids in buses it makes alot of since we protect are kids so they should do the same thing i believe that should be a law also

[nunya business]

i really like this websiteee (:

[nonya business]

i think we should have seatbelts on the school buses! (:

[Candace Loewenstein]

I agree with the seat belts but the problem is that the school districts don't want to add more buses/more money because a standard school bus can hold 77 children - that is 3 per seat. Tell me how a seat is to be seat belted for 3 children when 3 children do not fit solidly onto a seat? I am looking for any and all information on school districts making their own policies regarding the # of students on a school bus. Please email me. Thank you!

[LB]

This is such a joke! Has anyone ever seen the footage from iside the bus during an accident? The children are propelled like missles through the bus in a shocking way! It is frightening. My young child is home today because I felt that a two hour bus trip during poor weather & no seat belts was not worth the risks. Properly fitted belts lap/shoulder belts would save lifes. Many reports estimate at 20%. That may not seem like that many- but what if it is your child? Don't tell me about statistics! I have had many things happen in my life that were against the odds(some good, some bad). Everyone thinks it won't happe to them-UNTIL IT DOES! It is like playing russian roulet. But it is always about cost. Money is paper- our children are more valuable then all the paper money in the world. The governments tests have had many flaws & have been set up in a way to deliver the outcome that the desire. Don't rely on them. Many states have made their individual choices to require belts in all new buses. They know that it is needed. Well that is my passionate two cents. Thanks!

[Susan Ellis Holland]

I found this web site by doing a search myself; I just sent an e-mail to our city's school committee related to this topic and will go further if necessary; although massachusetts law and the NTSB does not require seatbelts, the American Academy of Pediatrics and others do support their use. Here is a link to a website I found:
http://www.ncsbs.org/endorsements/endorse_pediatric.htm

[Resa Gore]

I am a school bus driver, I have heard this arguement again and again... In an emergency situation, if an evactuation has to take place, seatbelts could cause more death then what it saves... Imagine the bus is on fire, your in a 71 passenger bus... do you know how long it would take to unbuckle or to cut the straps on 71 people?

Bus drivers strive to evacuate a bus in 6 minutes.. this would not be able to be accomplished with seatbelts...

I drive an O.H. (Otherwise handicaped) Bus... and my bus does have seat belts... I have to stop at every stop and make sure every student still has their seat belt on...

While any death is one death too many on a school bus.... you consider the billions of students transported each day on a bus, and the number that are killed in the bus... most fatalities happen outside the bus during loading or unloading by people NOT stopping at the stop arm.... Seatbelts don't protect those children....

Due to the new carseat/booster seat laws... most of your preschool/kindergarden buses are equipped with seatbelts,car seats or safety harnesses to ensure the most safest ride possible.... I know at least with our contact that is the case...

I've been a bus driver for 8 years.... my own children have ridden these buses... and my son's bus was in an accident.... and he came out unscaved....

[Wendy]

It's far more dangerous to have an improperly fitting seat belt in a school bus than no seat belt at all. (Can you say "ruptured spleen?") Are all of you willing to be school bus moms and check all the seat belts after the children are strapped in? They must be accommodating for all sizes of children, remember?

[wwwmama]

This has been on my mind so much lately! My daughter is only 2 but she's in the 4th percentile for weight, so I picture her tiny little body bouncing around a bus like a ball in a pinball machine because she doesn't have a seatbelt. I swore to my husband she wouldn't ride the bus. He laughs at me, but it really scares me to think of what might happen.

[Suburban Turmoil]

Great information! You've just made me swear to myself that my toddler will get on a school bus as infrequently as possible.

[amy h.]

My son has been asking to ride the school bus when he starts kindergarten in the fall. I was nervous about it before, now there is NO WAY. Thanks for the information. I'm keeping him belted safely in our van for now. But what happens when he goes on field trips or joins a team that travels to games? I think that all parents need to take this on and speak up about this idiocy. I plan to do my part. Thanks again.

[Amy]

I wonder if it all has to do with cost. I remember being squeezed 3 in a seat in HIGH SCHOOL in those buses so that they could save on gas money and not get two buses. I bet it all comes back to that. Those seats comfortably sit two (and sometimes that is iffy)....I bet they are trying to save cost somewhere. Thanks for all the good info!!