Do school buses need seat belts?

Question

There was a school bus that crashed off a interstate ramp today in Huntsville, AL and killed three high school girls, with three more in very critical condition and another 12 in very bad shape. None was wearing seat belts.

To answer Kasey C.
It was reported that students was riding in the car that made the bus go out of control, they was leaving their school to go to class at a tech. school, those students chose to drive, and was playing with the bus driver. But I do not believe you can say if he had ran over the car, the bus would not have flipped over ramp.

Answer 1

You bet they need them, what we're they thinking anyways in the past, "The bus is so big no one will get hurt" how many more years do we have to see these kids maybe ours getting hurt and killed, plus kids need to be in their seat at all times, I know when I was a kid I loved to sit in the back with the huge bumps and our body's would fly in the air, probably not good, we also use to play tag, the bus driver either did not care and did not know, plus it would keep the bully's hands to them self or next to the poor kid sitting next to him/her. Seat belts have my vote. Thanks for asking.

Answer 2

I think it's a good idea. I do not think it would take them too much longer to get off the bus than it does now. The kids would know their stop was coming and have their seat belt undone long before the bus came to a complete stop. I also think having seat belts on the bus would prevent all those kids from standing up while the bus is going. Every day when I pick my kids up from school we fallow 2 buses through town, and all the way through town roughly 1/3 to 1/2 of the bus kids are standing in the aisle way or in their seat. Had that been my kids in my car going through town standing up I would get pulled over and fined. Also the only injury you mentioned was death. What about other possible injuries that could result from a bus accident? What if lets say the bus was in a roll over accident those kids would be tossed around like popcorn in a popcorn popper. Broken bones, busted noses, concussion, etc all that could have been prevented by the simple use of a seat belt. And I am sure those accidents have happened.

Answer 3

Federal legislation does NOT require seatbelts for any sort of buses, including school buses.

If the school bus did NOT swerve, and just crashed into that car that cut him off, the bus would not have rolled over and went off the road. In trying to avoid an accident, the school bus driver caused an even bigger one.

EDIT: Even if it DID roll over after crashing the other car that cut it off, at least it would have been braking, , and after shoving the other car out of the way, going at a lesser speed, so it would not have gone over the overpass). Buses, despite their height, are actually pretty stable, UNLESS you try to do sudden maneuvers with them.

That's IMHO, of course. I am NOT an accident investigator.

Answer 4

This is a matter of opinion.

Bus Construction

In an accident involving a school bus, most fatalities and injuries occur outside of the bus. The construction of a typical school bus creates a safer passenger environment than that of a car or lighter vehicle. The impact of a crash is weaker because buses are heavier. This force is distributed differently along a bus. Buses have a body-on-frame design. This greatly differs from lighter vehicles, and provides impact protection not found elsewhere.

A bus' interior also differs from a car. The use of closely spaced seats that have padded backs -- a design called compartmentalization -- creates an enclosed environment for passengers in the absence of seat belts.

Studies of Safety
Numerous studies examining the effectiveness of different belt types and seating arrangements came to the same conclusion: seatbelts on a bus have more drawbacks than advantages.

Neither lap nor lap-and-shoulder belts on a bus provide the same type of protection offered in a car. During a head-on collision, the most common type for belts, lap belts, increase the risk of injury. On impact, this type of restraint allows a passenger's head to jerk forward, risking severe head and neck injury. Lap and shoulder belts would require the installation of stiffer seats. These seats could become a source of impact injury. Studies also showed that children slip downwards when restrained by lap and shoulder belts, risking injury to vulnerable internal organs.

In 1999, the U.S. National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) examined the effect of seat belt installation in buses. They came to the conclusion that seat belts actually would result in head injuries and fatalities. In fact, the NTSB found a relationship between most injuries/deaths and the seating position of the passenger. In these cases, the presence of seat belts would change nothing.

While there is no evidence proving that seat belts on buses save lives, there is reason to worry they may cause harm. During an emergency, seat belts could hinder young children from quickly exiting the bus; they simply could not free themselves. Drivers would be hard pressed to monitor belt usage for every student. And the heavy buckles could be used as weapons.

Studies by federal agencies, including the NTSB, have shown bus construction provides greater safety than seat belts ever could. Comparing the design of a school bus to a car is like comparing apples to oranges. Where belts protect passengers during car collisions, their presence may cause severe injuries on a bus. Seatbelts are only required on small buses weighing less than 10,000 pounds because their design more closely resembles a car. It is ironic, but the reality is that seat belts have no place on a school bus.

Answer 5

In theory, the idea is great.
But it has taken the law and the threat of a ticket to make many of us buckle up due to individual state laws.
Have also ridden behind many a school bus and it is all the driver can do to get the children(of various ages) to sit down in their seats or stay out of the isles.......much less behave - how could we possibly ensure seat belts would be used?

Answer 6

Did you see the pic of that bus? I'm not sure seat belts would have saved lives on this crash.

Answer 7

Of course they weren't wearing seat belts; there aren't any on school buses.

Answer 8

here in Alberta the small school buses need seat belts because they are on cutaway van chassis

Answer 9

Yes, they do. Only the government gets away with breaking laws.

Answer 10

This is so easy...of course school busses need seatbelts. They should make sealtbelts not only school busses but for VTAs too.