NATIONAL COALITION OF SCHOOL BUS SAFETY NEWS 2005

BUCKLE UP FOR SAFETY ON SCHOOL BUSES

By Susan Zimmerman

I used to think the yellow school bus was a symbol of safety until I had a daughter, then it hit me that I was expected to someday put my most precious possession on one -- that made me take a whole new look at the old family “friend” and what I saw I didn’t like.

Where are the seat belts on school buses? Trucks, police cars and fire engines all have seat belts. Police officers ticket drivers for not wearing one. Flight attendants on planes makes sure every single passenger is buckled in before the plane ever leaves the ground. We insist our children buckle up in the car before we drive on the road. So why not on school buses?

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) says seat belts are ineffectual as safety devices in most bus crash scenarios. NHTSA requires “compartmentalization” in school buses to provide protection via a pocket of closely spaced seats with energy-absorbing back seats. Simply put all that means is -- no seat belts.

Studies by the NHTSA suggest seat belts on buses have little, if any benefit in preventing injuries. Most of those studies only look at front and rear collisions, not side impacts. Statistically speaking school buses are safe, but I’m a mom of an 8-year-child and that’s not good enough for me! There are others who also disagree with NHTSA.

Five states currently require seat belts on school buses: California, Florida, Louisiana, New Jersey and New York. The National Parent-Teacher Association adopted a resolution calling for all new school buses to be equipped with lap belts. The American Medical Association, Physicians for Automotive Safety, the American Academy of Pediatrics, the American College of Emergency Physicians and other medical groups also endorse belts.

“For the last 20 years the industry has been allowed to set the standards for the safety of our children,” says Dr. Alan Ross, president of the National Coalition for School Bus Safety. That’s partly the result of the political process we have in our country and the ability of a rich industry to affect those processes.

Private contractors, who operate a third of the nations 440,000 yellow school buses and many school officials have fought the installation of lap belts on school buses for nearly thirty years. For the most part, the federal and state governments have gone along with them. NHTSA says school bus seat belts aren’t worth the costs -- what about the lives?

When all is said and done what really matters is the safety of the children -- so why can’t we all agree if we all want what‘s best for our children?  Just think about this the next time you put your child on a school bus. On the way to school in Monticello, MN, Kristine Burzinski’s school bus collided head on with a gravel truck. Of the 13 children on board, three including 9-year-old Kristine were killed. There were no seat belts.

“As far as I’m concerned, my daughter died for the corporate bottom line,” said her father David Burzinski. “I firmly believe that had there been seat belts my daughter would be here with us today.” [04/07/99 "School Bus Accidents Focus Attention on Lack of Seat Belts," by Joan Lowy].  As far as I’m concerned the theory of compartmentalization should be thrown out the window -- no seat belt required.

I hope someday to hear the click of seat belts being buckled on school buses, but until then my silent protest will continue. I can’t fight big business single handedly, but I will stand alone and win every time my daughter doesn’t ride the bus. There’s strength in the sound a seat belt being buckled -- just try it, everyone's welcome!

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