School Bus Safety Information
Posted: Tue Sep 22, 2015 8:34 pm
See the forum posting after this (or simply page down) for 2019 update
Some interesting research from NHTSA on School Bus safety, including the fact that:
Some interesting research from NHTSA on School Bus safety, including the fact that:
- "School bus transportation is one of the safest forms of transportation in the United States. The fatality rate for school buses is only 0.2 fatalities per 100 million vehicle miles traveled (VMT) compared to 1.5 fatalities per 100 million VMT for cars"
- ABSTRACT:
- School bus transportation is one of the safest forms of transportation in the United States. Every day, our nation's 440,000 public school buses transport more than 23.5 million children to and from school and school-related activities. The safety record is impressive: American students are nearly eight times safer riding in a school bus than with their own parents and guardians in cars. The fatality rate for school buses is only 0.2 fatalities per 100 million vehicle miles traveled (VMT) compared to 1.5 fatalities per 100 million VMT for cars.
School buses have annually averaged about 26,000 crashes resulting in 10 deaths – 25 percent were drivers; 75 percent were passengers. Frontal crashes account for about two passenger deaths each year. This paper describes past, present and near-term school bus research efforts.
- School bus transportation is one of the safest forms of transportation in the United States. Every day, our nation's 440,000 public school buses transport more than 23.5 million children to and from school and school-related activities. The safety record is impressive: American students are nearly eight times safer riding in a school bus than with their own parents and guardians in cars. The fatality rate for school buses is only 0.2 fatalities per 100 million vehicle miles traveled (VMT) compared to 1.5 fatalities per 100 million VMT for cars.
- NHTSA School Bus Fact Sheet 2004 – 2013
From 2004 to 2013 there were 340,039 fatal motor vehicle traffic crashes. Of those, 1,214 (0.4%) were classified as school-transportation-related.
- Summary
- NASDPTS fully supports the installation and use of lap-shoulder belts in school buses. NASDPTS is not advocating that the installation and/or use of lap-shoulder belts be required. NASDPTS believes this should be a local decision based on local need, but also believes lap/shoulder belt equipped seats should be encouraged as an option when considering new bus original equipment. Should a state or local district decide to equip their buses with lap-shoulder belts, NASDPTS believes a mandatory usage policy should also be in place along with necessary training on the importance of wearing and proper usage of the beltsalong with proper evacuation training. NASDPTS supports the NHTSA position that this local decision should not be done at the expense of students being displaced from school bus transportation