Why doesn't the law require school buses to have seat belts?

Answer 1

The National Highway Transportation Administration (NHTSA), one of the most influential government agencies when it comes to public safety on roadways, has stated that current school buses are among the safest forms of transportation available. After studying the results of crashes involving school buses, the NHTSA stated that there was no compelling reason to believe the use of seat belts on school buses should be federally mandated. Most accidents involving school buses were either frontal or rear collisions, which means that passengers were protected by a safety feature called compartmentalization.

Compartmentalization, a concept seen frequently on commercial airplanes, involves seating passengers in rows of padded seats with cushioned backs. The belief is that during frontal or rear impact, the most common types of wrecks involving school buses, passengers would either be pushed back into their seats or thrown forward into the padded backs of the row ahead. The use of seat belts might require stiffer seats, which would negate the theory of compartmentalization. It is also feared that some students would receive internal injuries from seat belts through a process called submarining, the tendency for a body to slide downwards during impact.

Seat belts on school buses may also hamper rescue or evacuation efforts, as adults or older students may have to spend precious minutes unbuckling young or disoriented passengers. Unruly students could also use the heavy buckles as makeshift weapons, creating even more of a safety hazard. There is also the argument that seat belts would only protect passengers of school buses during unusual events such as roll-overs or flips, not other possible accidents such as fires or submersion. Considering the expense of retrofitting current school buses or replacing entire fleets with approved seat belt systems, the benefits of seat belt use do not currently outweigh the liabilities.

One problem many school systems face with the prospect of mandatory seat belt use on school buses is compliance. The bus driver already has a significant amount of responsibility, so schools would have to hire additional monitors to ride on all the school buses. In light of sexual misconduct concerns, both male and female monitors would have to be hired in order to avoid any allegations of impropriety. Besides the added expense of hiring qualified monitors, there would also be a question of liability if even one student removed his or her seat belt and became injured as a result.

Retrofitting current school buses for seat belts can also be an expensive and controversial process for school systems. There are few guarantees that retrofitted seat belt systems would not fail under certain circumstances. There are also very few standards in place for seat belt systems installed by manufacturers of school buses. The handful of states which have instituted seat belt mandates for school buses have not reported many incidents in which the use of seat belts was clearly an advantage over compartmentalization. While it may seem counter-intuitive to mandate seat belt use for automobiles but not for school buses, there are some differences between the two modes of transportation which require different approaches to passenger safety.

Answer 2

Seat belts on a bus would not work, the passenger would refuse to wear a seat belt, by saying I am only going 2 stops mate.
Of course some people like yourself would wear your seat belt but sometimes even you would think to yourself that it is unnecessary as you are only going up the road.

Some passengers on buses are reasonable people when it comes to following the rules, some will with reservations and the rest will argue all day and even insult the driver because he is doing his job properly according to the rules laid down by the operators of the bus company in line with regulations.

Most people who use buses want to have their own way until something goes wrong and they are hurt then it the bus drivers fault in their eyes, it is never their fault when it's time to claim compensation.

That is part of the problem on buses, as far as the passenger is concerned the bus drives itself,the driver is there for show, he/she has no right to speak to or direct passengers to behave in a right and proper way. The driver is responsible for each and every passenger that boards the bus he is in charge of at all times until the passenger get off the bus, but the passenger thinks different don't they?

If only you knew what kids get up to on school buses you wouldn't have asked this question. They are some of the most vulgar passengers ever to board a bus, because they know they have all the rights, they wouldn't wear seats belts either they want to play around.

I am an ex bus driver.

Answer 3

Neither. I have a reliable source for the following information. It is 80 times less likely that a child will die in a school bus than in an automobile. Therefore it is unwise for parents to give their kids a ride to school in inclement weather. The bus is safer. The back of a seat in a school bus is designed to absorb the energy of a forward collision in such a way as to reduce the possibility of being injured. However the chance of knee injuries is higher. When seatbelts are in use the number of knee injuries go down dramatically but the risk of head and neck injuries are high due to the way the body is held in place while the upper torso moves forward. Neck injuries can also be more deadly. Of course we are talking about a two point lap belt. There are options available for three and four point harnesses that could be more effective for a childs safety. These are not in use because they are more expensive. My opinion is one of many but personally I feel that two point seat belts are just as unsafe as not wearing one at all. If you want your kids to be even safer than they already are push for three point seatbelts. But they are pretty darn safe already in a schoolbus as long as they stay seated the way they are supposed to. Sadly I have to agree with Malcolm G. I am American and it makes me sick that people think that the cause of everything is either due to Republican or Democrats. If they both continue to do the stupid crap they've been doing we need to refresh our leadership and let them know the reason why the are there. To be public servants not power mongers.

Answer 4

I've asked bus designers this question, and here's what I was told.

1) In an emergency situation (especially with younger kids) it's easier to have them get right up instead of having them buckled in. It's that few seconds that may save a life, and the seat belt may become jammed, stuck, etc. Plus, this makes the bus driver more responsible to check every single seat instead of being out with the kids.

2) Bus seats are designed to replace seat belts. This is why they have high back and are padded on front and back, and rather close together.

3) Cost. Just like everything else, it's too costly to put 65 to 100 seat belts in a bus.

4) Chances are that while the bus driver is driving, a passenger is going to take off the seatbelt anyways.

5) The seat belt can be used as a weapon. A hard metal object swinging through the air can make one heck of a dent in someone's head.

The list went on, but those were the main points that I got out of them.

Answer 5

I often wonder the same thing!! It sure would save alot of lives, and what do they mean that they wouldn't be able to enforce it? Easy, put your belt on or the bus doesn't move, the driver can walk back and do a belt check!!! This is the main reason I believe though, that they don't have belts......because if something were to happen, some kind of emergency, the kids would be alot harder to evacuate, and take alot longer. They could become stuck in their belts! Thats the only reason that makes any sense to me!! Hope this clarify's everything for you!! I have an idea, call the transportation board at your local school and ask them why, or better yet, the city transportation safety office!!! Good luck.

Answer 6

There are a lot of people asking the same question. Especially every time we have a bus crash with kids aboard. Our city was looking into it, and decided that the school board could not afford to do it. Plus they said that they were not able to enforce the seat belt law with so many kids and only the driver to enforce it.

Answer 7

Good question.. Its hard to believe their not required. It's got to be a money issue i'm sure. To go back and either replace all the old busses or update them would be alot of money most cities can't afford. I'm sure some agency did tests comparing the amount of kids saved due to seatbelts, compared to the amount of money it would cost. Probably didn't add up to a good enough benifit. haha see fight club does teach me something.

Answer 8

For ease of getting on and off faster in an emergency I think. But I think seatbelts might not be a bad idea.

Answer 9

I suppose the answer is "it's impractical", but I agree that they should be equipped with seat belts and the passengers should be required to use them.

Answer 10

Its money and politics.