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TESTIMONIESTestimony - Nancy BauderClick here to download this document (PDF) Seatbelts on School Buses Testimony presented to the
National Transportation Safety Board, 1994 The National Coalition for School Bus Safety (NCSBS) [formerly known as the National Coalition for Seatbelts on School Buses] coordinates the efforts of people throughout the country working for school bus safety, disseminates information through our fifty coordinators in the United States, Canada, Great Britain, and Australia. The NCSBS supports the installation of safety belts on all newly-manufactured school buses, improving driver training, pedestrian safety, as well as other safety issues, such as overcrowding and evacuation. Providing school bus passengers with added restraint protection also provides educational value which may save lives in automobile collisions, the number one killer of children. With all states' passage of mandatory child restraint laws, parents demand that the safety belt be provided to children on school buses (where they ride from one to two hours per day, to school and on field trips) both for their personal safety and the carryover benefit of that habit to automobile usage. This habit should be encouraged, rather than hindered by the school system. Even though many states have mandatory usage laws, we ourselves decide whether or not to buckle up for safety. Most children do not have that choice in a school bus. We parents, educators, physicians, and responsible citizens are only asking that opportunity be provided. THE SCHOOL BUS AS THE SAFEST VEHICLE? The School Bus has been called the 'safest' form of transportation by the school bus industry. How safe is it? School bus injuries compare favorably to all vehicle injuries, when one looks at information supplied by the National Research Council. The figures are stated as approximately 9500 injuries and 10 fatalities per year inside buses and 500 injuries and 40 fatalities in the loading zone. These numbers do not usually include collisions which occur on field trips or other outings or involve private schools, even though they involve regular standard school buses. In the Kentucky, 1989 crash, 27 passengers were killed. In Alton, Texas, 1990 crash, 29 passengers were killed. And on July 31, 1991, 7 passengers were killed, 53 injured. All involved post-standard school buses, yet none were included in national school bus statistics used by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. The only way to accurately assess school bus statistics fairly would be to compare bus collisions to automobile collisions which occur during the hours of 7 to 9am and 2 to 4pm which is the time school buses usually run. Bus collisions should also be compared to automobile collisions which on a daily route. To compare bus collisions to and from school with other vehicle collisions that occur on the highway and at night (as most vehicle injuries and fatalities occur) is unrealistic. What about compartmentalization? In 1967, a major study on school bus construction and safety features was conducted at University of California, Los Angeles. The term 'compartmentalization' was first used in that study, and referred to a recommended 28 inch high seat back and a padded side arm, and seatbelts to reduce the injuries sustained by passengers hurled against one another. Post standard buses meet the federal requirement of 24 inches now required. Even with a higher seat back it is a myth that compartmentalization provides sufficient protection. There is still no protection from injury in a side or rollover collision. We need to provide passengers a way to remain in the "compartment' and in their seats during a collision. In 1977, Federal standards of higher backed, padded seats and improved bus structure were a step toward safer buses, and have indeed reduced fatalities, but thousands of injuries to children in bus crashes continue to occur every year. Injuries reported include minor: contusions, concussions, abrasions, fractures, and lacerations to the head and extremities; and major: abdominal injuries, head, neck, and back injuries, and amputations. These injuries occur as students strike the roof, windows, seatbacks, and other students. In addition to collisions and rollovers, passengers are injured during sudden stops and turns and while hanging out of windows. It is clear that seat belts will hold passengers in seats during stops, turns, and evasive maneuvers, thus protecting them. Children belted in place also have difficulty sticking their heads and arms out of windows. Compartmentalization is the most effective in the head-on collision. However, a crash in Reno, Nevada, (1987) showed that compartmentalization does not always work: 82 children were injured when a 90 passenger bus ran into another bus at 30 miles per hour when the brakes failed. According to witness reports, the children noticed the driver was having problems getting the bus stopped, so they all stood up to see what was wrong. They were out of the 'compartment' and bounced around the bus when the collision occurred. This one crash utilized all the medical and emergency resources in the entire community and tied up traffic for hours. According to medical personnel, it is probable that the majority of these injuries would not have occurred, had the passengers been restrained. Liability and cost? The liability question is one that is always raised by school districts considering requiring belts on school buses. Is the driver or district liable if a passenger's belt is not fastened and he is injured? The New York School Bus Safety Belt Law contains a clause to help absolve liability in this instance. Nationwide, there have been many lawsuits regarding bus-related injuries. Some of these suits have been filed because of lack of occupant restraints, and have netted the victims and their families hundreds of thousands of dollars. The average cost of a school bus is around $40,000. The average cost of belt installation is approximately $1000 per bus. The cost of medical care resulting from one collision is often greater than the cost of belts for the entire fleet. How has this issue been studied? UCLA 1967 Crash Test recommended: "all buses be equipped with restraint systems…Restraint within the seat area is essential for injury minimization." Transport Canada School Bus Crash Test (Released, 1985): Head Injury Criteria levels in belted crash test dummies in large school buses were lower than those deemed by the Department of Transportation to cause serious injury. The only dummy who "died" on the large school bus was unbelted. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, 1985: Safety Belts in School Buses – "In side impact and rollover, the use of seat belts are likely to provide additional safety." Dr. John States, University of Rochester School of Medicine, Chairman, Dept. of Orthopedics, Rochester, NY (3/3/87): "My statements are based on a lifetime experience as a practicing orthopedic surgeon, a researcher in motor vehicle accidents and a designer of safety belt systems. My own research and my knowledge of the traffic safety and biomechanics literature reveals that safety belts in school buses will provide additional crash protection particularly in side impact and rollover accidents…School bus safety belts will reinforce the habit of safety belt use. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, Feb. 1986, School Bus Safety Belts: Their Use, Carryover Effects, and Administrative Issues: "Administrators, transportation directors, and reported improved behavior on buses equipped with belts…and experienced fewer distractions in belt-equipped buses than in non-equipped vehicles." K. Weber, MA, and J. Melvin, PhD, University of Michigan College of Engineering (1/23/86): "We firmly believe that newly purchased large school buses should be equipped with lap belts." Dr. Arnold Siegel, Forensic Consultant, Trauma Research Group, Encino, CA (10/2/86): "For school buses, the seat belt angles related to the pelvic area of a child are close to ideal due to the seat design, the seat height from the floor, and the location of the belts to the seat horizontal frame bar." M. Spital, BA, A. Spital, MD, and R. Spital, PhD, from Community Services, University of Rochester School of Medicine, Rochester, NY, and Columbia, MD: Pediatrics (American Academy of Pediatrics Journal), 11/86: 'The Compelling Case for Seat Belts on School Buses': "There is strong evidence that seat belts would increase the safety of school buses." The National Transportation Safety Board School Bus Crash Study, March 1987. After at least 13 prior recommendations for seat belts on school buses, the NTSB now alleges that the post standard bus seats are adequately protecting school bus passengers without seat belts. However, there has not been any substantial reduction in injuries post-standard.' The study of 43 hand-picked collisions showed no comparison between belted and unbelted passengers. Only the 39 accidents involving unbelted buses were evaluated. The National Transportation Research Board of the National Academy of Sciences was commissioned by congress to conduct an eighteen-month study of school bus safety. Findings include: "Seat (lap) belts…may reduce the likelihood of death or injury to passengers involved in school bus crashes by up to 20 percent." However, the added cost to equip all new buses nationwide of $40 million would possibly only save one life and a few dozen serious injuries. Experience of districts Discipline generally improves when seat belts are on the bus. A study by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, February, 1986, showed improved behavior in buses equipped with belts. All of the transportation directors in the study, even those initially opposed to the trial belt programs, supported decisions to equip their entire fleets with belts. The calmer climate produced by seat belt usage allows drivers to concentrate better on their driving and observe more carefully the students in the danger zones outside the bus. The type of belts used have been a problem in certain districts. Long black belts with removable buckles are not recommended because vandalism, and tripping hazards. A shorter belt, color-coded, with a safer, push-button buckle is recommended, and more readily used. In the future? More districts add buses with belts each year for a variety of reasons. Some districts now transport preschool children and are using belts for children with child safety seats and without. Mildly handicapped students are also sometimes being transported, belted, in larger buses in some districts. NCSBS members have tried to get counts of buses with belts from state transportation directors, but the ones contacted have not been able to provide that information. Saved by the belt? Since belted school bus passengers have shown few injuries in crashes, they are usually not publicized by the media. And The National Transportation Safety Board has studied few bus crashes where children are protected by belts. The NCSBS Board asks members to contact them when there are publicized crashes involving belted passengers in crashes. September 30, 1988, Catalina Foothills, Arizona: After five years experience with belt use in their full-sized buses, a bus lost control on a curve and overturned at 25 mph. All 14 students were belted, none injured. (Source: attached newspaper article) January 16, 1990, St. Louis, Missouri: Charles Dougherty, MD, a St. Louis pediatrician, came upon a bus crash scene and assisted the injured. His comments (see copy of letter enclosed): "On January 16, 1990, I was involved with the first aid and triaging of injured students at the site of a school bus accident…In this accident, a bus skidded on slick pavement and rolled onto its side. Fortunately, no one but the driver was critically injured, but a number of the children received minor injuries, including on little girl who had her ear sliced nearly in half. One interesting note… Evidently the bus involved had one seatbelt, reserved for the child who was the worst-behaved child. That child came up to me at the site…to point out to me how he was one of the few children totally uninjured in the accident. April 11, 1989, Allegany School District, New York: Seat belts were credited with keeping 61 students from suffering serious injuries during a collision. (See attached newspaper article) June 7, 1991, Skokie, IL School District 68: a minivan ran head-on into the driver's side of one of the district's buses with belted passengers. Twenty students escaped injury, two received minor injuries. A Kansas City, Missouri bus crash on May 20, 1991, carrying belted preschoolers underscores the need for seat belt installation on all new buses. Opponents have said that children would be "trapped in their seats" in case of a fire. The same argument was used years ago before belts were installed in other vehicles. A Lincoln Continental struck the bus, which overturned, slid into a tree, and caught fire. The newspaper article (attached) spoke of the quick action of bystanders in helping get children off the bus. However, Leanna Joyce, a television reporter on the scene stated that the children unbuckled themselves and started evacuation through the rear exit about the same time as the witnesses arrived to help. Sixteen children were uninjured, one child was treated for a minor injury, and the driver and monitor were treated for injuries. All occupants were belted except the monitor. Ironically, in a nearly identical crash, on May 18 (see attached article), North Carolina experiences one of its "worst school bus crashes in history" as three teenage students died and the remaining 17 were injured. The bus was hit broadside by a truck, overturned and struck a tree. Fortunately the bus did not ignite, or there would have been many more fatalities. "Rescuers worked for more than three hours using electric saws to free bodies from the wreckage," according to the Charlotte Observer. At the urging of parents in the district, school officials have considered installing seat belts in buses for several years and this crash will refuel this debate. Conclusion The NCSBS cannot be an investigative organization. We are a network of people trying to help each other achieve safer school transportation for our children. It is our opinion that lap belts in school buses are better than no belts at all, to keep passengers in their seats. Safety belt education programs, available in all states, should be taught in schools, and belt use should be required. National organizations
supporting belts on school buses since 1985:
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