Am I the only person in the world who think school buses are completely unsafe?

Question

There are no safety restraints, no air conditioning, only one adult on the bus to "babysit" and that person is distracted with driving. Drug deals, bullying, stabbings all going on with no adult to prevent it. Sure there are cameras, but you only see things after they've happened. And what if there's an accident. Children under 4' 9" are suppose to be in booster seats and under 40lbs in a car seat but they're free to roam on a school bus. Tickets for all other kids not in seatbelt in a car, but free to walk around on a bus. Buses should be illegal or brought up to safety standards. The school my daughter goes to won't even allow her to go on a field trip unless she goes with the class on the bus. I'm not taking that chance, so she has to miss out. Really sucks! Am I the only one who's concerned about school bus safety?

Answer 1

I agree! At what point do we decide that since it is economically difficult to retrofit buses with seatbelts we just don't bother! I mean, does no one value their child's safety anymore? I applaud you for not allowing your child to go on the field trips, I did the same thing when my kids were in public school. But be sure and point out, in writing to the school, WHY your daughter won't be able to participate. Also, look into local homeschool groups and see if they happen to have a cool field trip for the same day as her schools. Maybe she can just have a different field trip, and meet some new kids. School buses safety standards should be improved, or at the very least, kids should not be left out of events because they have safety minded parents! Good luck.

Answer 2

I totally agree but don't know what can b done. My son's preschool buses do have restraints but since he's still under 40lbs that's not really sufficient. They also don't go anywhere w/o another adult besides the driver on the bus. Which is a great policy. Were not on the bus route so he doesn't ride but he wants to. I would've made a huge fuss about the field trip ordeal! Have u seen the tapes from inside a bus during an accident? The kids, backpacks, etc... r thrown around like ragdolls! It's not acceptable.

Answer 3

It depends, my buses are completely safe. There aren't seatbelts or airconditioning, and it's near freezing in the winter, but the adults have a huge mirror above their heads that can see everything going on on the bus, and they look up every few seconds and tell someone to stop doing something. If a child gets ridiculous, they get detention, suspension, and are removed from the bus. Kids have harmed each other, yes, but the bus driver sees it and reports it. The kids who have harmed each other aren't on the buses anymore. Kids are NOT allowed to stand up or move on a bus unless it's come to a complete stop, it's illegal. There is a first aid kit, along with six emergency exits, and we have yearly practices of what to do when in an accident. Trust me, I've been going on the bus for five years now, everything is covered.

Answer 4

You're not the only one. When I was in school, I never rode the bus, except for field trips and with our JROTC flight. One time, coming back from a parade, some of the kids at our school was throwing rocks at the buses, broke one of the windows, and knocked one of the girls in the bus behind us unconscious.

Several times on field trips, some kid would always be sent to the back of the bus because of disobedience, and as Murphy's Law would have it, it would be while going around a corner... meaning the kid wound up falling into some other kid's lap.

I don't know how much times have changed, since when I was in school, I was fortunate to have two adults on any field trip bus I was on: the driver, and a teacher. But that's still not enough to handle two classes worth of over-excited kids.

I mean, I can understand why they don't put seatbelts on busses... I doubt any busdriver wants to unbuckle 50-some-odd kindergartners every day, and if there's an accident, those kids won't be able to leave their seats because they don't know how to unbuckle themselves... at least that was the reasoning given when I asked about it in High School.

If they'd only take the time to teach the kids, and put seatbelts in them, it'd be a step...

Plus, I *hate* driving behind a bus. All that smog can't be good for the environment, or my lungs, for that matter.

Answer 5

We have 2 adults on the bus where we live. One to drive and one to monitor. But even then, I don't like the bus driver's driving, so I drive my son to school and pick him up in the afternoon.

I'm a little flexible on Field Trips. It's not that often that they go out of town for field trips. If they do, notices are sent home ahead of time. But I can't see withholding him from having fun and participating in a hands on learning experience.

Keep in mind though that there's more than one adult on the bus when it comes to field trips. They can fit at least two classrooms on the bus....with those two classrooms are two teachers, plus chaperones! I would think the kids would be better behaved with that many adult eyes watching them. I guess knowing that, makes it easier for me to allow the Field Trips.

Another note: they are NEVER allowed to roam free! Our school takes time at the beginning of every school year to teach about safety. Whether it's on the bus or walking home...etc. I know because I've seen worksheets my son has brought home regarding these topics.

Another thing to keep in mind...as parents, we all know that we want the best for our kids and their safety is our number one concern. But we have to loosen our chains once in awhile. We can't keep them locked up in a bubble forever.

If you're that concerned, maybe join the PTA and voice your concerns. Maybe you could offer to run a new safety program. You could talk to legislature and see how far you can go with that.

Good Luck!

Answer 6

I completely agree with you.. it is an issue that needs to be raised in our children's schools....Another adult at elst should be put onteh bus to supervise and seatbelts should be installed as well. In my area the only concern teh school boards have is over crowding on the busses.. this woudn't be an issue if they assigned seatbelts to the seat so only a certain number of kids could use the bus at a time. Buses aren't cheap i'm sure, but the lives of our children are even more precious and valuable!

Answer 7

I don't like them, but they do have safety belts now. I was recently on one for a field trip and we all had to wear our seatbelts. There are also lots of buses with air conditioning. I do agree there should be more than ONE adult on the bus. I don't send my kids on buses, I drive them usually. That field trip was the only exception because it was a field trip to a short distance.

Answer 8

i agree and disagree with you. i rode a bus in middle and high school. the biggest problem with bus safety is parents don't teach their kids anything anymore. no manners no bringing up of any kind. drives me mad.kids have no respect. if kids are taught at an early age how to behave and act then the buses will be safe. when my son goes to school next year he will ride a bus unless we move closer to a school. which i dont see happening. seat belts on a school bus i agree with but in some areas buses are overcrowded and have three and four kids to a seat. theres no way to belt them all in. my middle school bus was like this we had three to every seat and ten or twelve kids standing it was not only dangerous but illegal and th kids standing would always fall on tthe kids that were seated and laugh about it. let your child go on field trips dont scar her and make her a target for teasing. this will damage her for life. most of the times buses are very safe just a few execptions and on field trips their will be plenty of adults on every bus. let her go she will be very safe

Answer 9

the value may be prohibitive to hire video reveal contraptions for each bus. As somebody else pronounced, cameras artwork properly (and are a one time cost). interior the corporation I drove for, the "specific desires" buses had video reveal contraptions, plus the buses that coated routes that had a popularity of such undesirable behaviour that one might decide for a whip and a chair to holiday with those ill behaved infants. i ought to work out the place a reveal screen may be a great tips. using is stressful sufficient each and every so often, and it would've made my job lots much less perplexing if that grow to be all I had to do, no longer be referee, social worker, therapist, what have you ever....all mutually as using over one hundred miles an afternoon. yet, the upward thrust in value may be daunting.

Answer 10

You are right---they are completely unsafe---and here is the kicker: I saw a 20/20 type show a couple of years ago about how unsafe US school busses are. What is boiled down to is that the bus companies have mathematically determined that it's cheaper to have a few lawsuits each year (I don't recall the exact number) than to actually install safety equipment on all the busses. Nice, eh? Gotta love good ol' fashioned capitalism...