The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), the supervisory organization which is responsible for determining motor vehicle safety standards at the federal level, has stated that “school bus transportation is one of the safest forms of transportation in the United States.”
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), the supervisory organization which is responsible for determining motor vehicle safety standards at the federal level, has stated that “school bus transportation is one of the safest forms of transportation in the United States.” While numerous studies have confirmed this statement, school buses are not immune to accidents. The American Academy of Pediatrics reports that approximately 17,000 children each year are treated in emergency rooms for school-bus-related injuries. While far fewer children die in school bus crashes than in car crashes, the high rate of school-bus-related injuries begs the question: should safety belts be installed in school buses?
The First Debate: Is Outfitting School Buses Affordable?
Forty-nine states and the District of Columbia require drivers and passengers to wear three-point lap-shoulder safety belts in cars and trucks. Only California and Texas, however, require drivers and passengers to wear three-point safety belts in school buses. Colorado recently entertained a bill that would have enacted a state law similar to those in California and Texas, but the bill died in committee after the project of outfitting buses with three-point belts was deemed too expensive.
As the state of the economy is already confining school budgets, the Colorado House Committee on Education ultimately thought it unwise to pass the cost of outfitting school buses with safety belts onto the currently impecunious school districts. Recent efforts by lawmakers in Kansas, Missouri, Tennessee and Wyoming to require installation of three-point safety belts in school buses have all been met with similar cost versus benefit debates. Likely these state legislatures are grappling with the reality of the law passed by Texas. Texas’ legislature was inspired to pass its school bus safety belt law after two high school students were killed when the bus carrying them overturned. Although the Texas law means well, the cash-strapped legislature is struggling to find the necessary funds to outfit new buses purchased after the September 1, 2010 deadline.
The Second Debate: Is Outfitting School Buses Necessary?
For decades, school bus safety has been largely dependent upon the concept of “compartmentalization.” Compartmentalization is a passive safety system which relies on the wide seat backing, small windows and abundance of foam padding in busses to absorb the impact energy of children thrown into the seats during frontal and rear-end crashes. It was compartmentalization that protected 17 students in a recent school bus crash in Boulder from injury when the driver jumped a curb and nearly slammed into a building.
Though compartmentalization may be effective in frontal and rear-end accidents, it is largely ineffective in roll-over and side-impact crashes and when children are not properly seated. So even if compartmentalization aids school buses in being the safest form of ground transportation in the United States, the addition of three-point safety belts could arguably make school buses even safer.
Three-point safety belts, which anchor a child at both the lap and the shoulder, have reduced injuries and fatalities in every vehicle in which they have ever been introduced, according to the NHTSA. Opponents of installing safety belts in school buses have legitimate concerns that children may misuse the belts, put them on improperly and that belt installation will drive up transportation costs. However legitimate these claims may be, it is worth considering the possibility that installation may cut injury and fatality rates, promote a lifelong habit in children of wearing safety belts in all vehicles and encourage proper seating habits in school buses.
For Further Reference
The American Academy of Pediatrics, American Medical Association, Center for Auto Safety, American College of Preventative Medicine and the American Academy of Orthopedic Surgeons have all endorsed the installation of seatbelts on school buses. If you agree with these endorsements and feel strongly that seat belts should be installed on school buses, contact your state and federal legislators. If you or your child has been injured in a school bus accident or you have questions on this matter, please contact an experienced attorney.
