Seatbelts on schoolbuses

[Minnie824]

Ok, I don't understand how, with all the child safety laws, and seatbelt laws, that there are still no seatbelts on schoolbuses. I mean, I'm sure there are a lot of good bus drivers, but there are some bad also, and we just have to trust them to drive safely with out children who could wander freely in the bus. There was an incident the other day near us where a truck hit a schoolbus and the bus lost control and went into a house. There were some injuries too (although not serious) because there were no seatbelts. Is there a good reason that this has not been required yet?

 

[dianeschlicht]

Actually, it has been studied, and seatbelts on school busses would creat more serious injuries if the bus is in an accident. This was the discussion in Minnesota several years ago, so a study was done.

 

[Mskanga]

I still don't see how a child flying on impact is safer than wearing seatbelts, the bus rolls over the child falls right on his neck onto the roof of the bus. They may have done studies on this all they want but it doesn't make sense.

 

[PRINCESS VIJA]

I have to agree. I can't believe it would be safer. I bet it is a cost issue. At this point in time I drive my DS to school. They share busses with middle school kids, and between the safety issue, as well as having him exposed to "middle school knowledge" I think it is better for me to drive him.

 

[Robinrs]

Originally posted by PRINCESS VIJA
I have to agree. I can't believe it would be safer. I bet it is a cost issue.

AMEN! Study or no study there is no way a child is better off without a seatbeat than with. Why are there seatbelts on charter buses, then???

 

[caitycaity]

actually it does make sense. there are seatbelts on charter buses b/c people on charter buses are not usually small children, and they are able to take their seatbelts on and off by themselves. also b/c charter buses usally travel on the interstates at high rates of speed; most school buses do not.


one of the major reasons seatbelts are considered more dangerous in school bus accidents is b/c if something happens to the driver, or even if it doesn't, the little kids had too many problems getting their seatbelts off in an emergency. then they could be stuck in a burning bus, or worse.

b/c of buses' size and the fact that most buses do not take roads with high speed limits, most accidents involving school buses are not high impact enough to override the concern about kids being stuck in the bus.

you may not like the research, but maybe you should look into it more closely before you make a blanket assumption that it is bad.

 

[iluvorlando]

Good point CC!

 

[danacara]

Caity is absolutely right.

 

[aahmom1]

I know we've had this discussion before. If they had to get out of the bus in a hurry it would be a bigger disaster because the driver wouldn't have time to go around and un-hook all of the children's seatbelts. The seats are cushioned for a reason, it the bus comes to a fast stop and the kids do go forward they will hit the cushioned seat in front of them. Which is also why the seatbacks are so high.

 

[POLLY ANN]

My son, who is 4, gets bussed to 1/2 day preschool and they supply the car seat that he is mandated to sit in.

But my daughter, only a year older, rides the bus with no seatbelt. I really hadn't given it any thought since I rode the bus with no seatbelt either when in school. But I'm with Caity, my dd would never be able to unfasten herself if she needed to get out of the bus on her own. I'm not thrilled that she could become a projectile either, but since our school isn't even 5 miles away and they don't go over 30 - 35 mph, the chances of that happening are slim to none.

 

[Tiggeroo]

the rate of severe injuries even in terrible looking bus accidents is low. I vaguely remember a bus accident with a student fatality and that involved flooding or water. Generally it is the driver who gets hurt, and he probably has a seat belt and is not wearing it.
I worry far more about the sport trips at the school with small groups, where they choose to take a mini bus or large van. There you do hear of fatalities.

 

[Dizzy-Disney4]

Caity is right. If you ever saw how fast a bus on fire fills with smoke (BLACK,CHOKING,ACRID SMOKE), you would never want seatbelts on the bus. Even if the driver were able to help, there is NO WAY a driver could help all the children in the two minutes it takes for that bus to be filled. The real problem is over crowded buses that don't allow children to sit properly and safely and children who don't understand HOW IMPORTANT it is to sit and not stand or walk on a bus when its moving. More funding is needed for more buses to ease overcrowding and more moniters to enforce the rules while the driver is concentrating on the road. As a driver, I believe ALL buses, regardless of the ages of the children on board should have a monitor.

 

[janette]

Originally posted by caitycaity
actually it does make sense. there are seatbelts on charter buses b/c people on charter buses are not usually small children, and they are able to take their seatbelts on and off by themselves. also b/c charter buses usally travel on the interstates at high rates of speed; most school buses do not.

My sister has a tour/charter bus business. There are no seat belts. The size and weight of the busses do make them safer. They also don't drive at excessive speeds even on the highways.

A child is generally safer in a bus than your car. A car rear-ended my girls bus a few weeks ago, the car I quess had extensive damage. After the police came the bus continued it's route, none of the kids had any injuries, not even scratches.

edited to add: The worst bus accident I know of was in South Texas several years ago. Several kids died when the bus went into a quarry. Most of them drowned, the bus was filled to standing room only and they couldn't all get out fast enough. The company that owned the truck that hit the bus was sued and most families were given huge settlements. I always wondered why more fault wasn't found with the fact that if the bus hadn't been so crowded more would have survived.

 

[smileybrat]

many charter buses don't have seat belts so why would a school bus. even if they did put seat belts in, most kids wouldn't wear them. on the smaller buses at my old school they tried that and it didn't work. it would cost a lot to install them too.

 

[Olaf]

A child is generally safer in a bus than your car.

There is no "generally" about it. Statistically, your child is safer on a school bus than in your own car.

 

[cruisnfamily]

I thought I had read somewhere about the seatbelts themselves causing problems: ie: kids whipping the metal ends at each other, etc. And there was also a thought as to they would have to be secured to the floor and not the seat or something like that. I don't know the real deal but I bet a bus full of elementary kids could really hurt each other whipping those belts with metal buckles all over the place.

 

[becka]

Originally posted by Dizzy-Disney4
The real problem is over crowded buses that don't allow children to sit properly and safely and children who don't understand HOW IMPORTANT it is to sit and not stand or walk on a bus when its moving.

AMEN! I think that school districts and busing companies need to use more common sense! When I was in high school the school cut the number of busses running because they said the current busses were not being fully utilized and they could get more kids on each bus. They were basing this on the "fact" that 3 kids should be sitting in each seat! They might be able to get 3 very small elementary kids to sit safely in one seat but did they really expect to get 3 fully grown teenagers to sit in one seat? I was one of the last stops so when I had to ride the bus I somehow had to manage to sit on maybe 6 inches (if I was lucky) of seat while carrying a full backpack, a clarinet and usually a few books that would not fit in the backpack. If there ever had been an accident I would have been in serious trouble.

 

[popeyeohoh]

O.K. I AM A SCHOOL BUS DRIVER. 1st of all seatbelts could kill your child. It would take forever to get those
children out if the bus was burning. The chemicals that are put in the seats to retard fire can kill when breathed in. The bus is the safest mode of travel to and from school. LIke less than 2% injuries per year.
A child driving themselves to school run about 16% chance of injury. The state allows three children in a seat if it is considered an elementary route. That could also include middle and high school students on that same route. As for children running around on the bus parents could have a big influence. The schools have a bus safety week. The children know the rules. Tell your child to behave. That would probably end that. School bus drivers cannot be expected to see everything. In our state a driver has got to have at least 20hr. of driving Instruction attend classes for one week for 4 hours aday
Take 3 written test with the dmv. Pass a driving test. Pass a state school bus driving test on proper procedures. Bad drivers not many.

 

[popeyeohoh]

School bus drivers are also fingerprinted, drug tested and a criminal background check. We are also randomly tested throughout the school year. Our school teachers don't even have that.

 

[Dizzy-Disney4]

The thing that most people don't realize is that school bus seats are compartmentalized to protect children. If the child is not within that "compartment" then they are not protected. I once refused to drive my bus because I had four seats that had three people in them and the children on the ends were facing sideways trying to hang onto the few inches of space they had for their bottoms. I drove a 72 passenger bus. That meant that I had room for 72 people...PROVIDED they all had a 13 in wide bottom when sitting. That's what the side of my bus said...72- 13 inch seats. My 2nd grade DS was bigger than that. Very rarely can you SAFELY sit 3 children in a seat...especially with the book bags and back packs they are required to carry back and forth to school.