SPECIAL REPORT
“If you think of [the data] from the perspective of a
parent…there certainly has been some horrific crashes that have made the news and have been just tragic…I could see a parent really being concerned with putting their child on a school bus. I hope data like this, and oth- er sources really do show that school buses are safe,” he explained. “National Safety Council is going to advocate for them to even be safer, but they are safe.” He pointed out that only about 5 percent of the deaths,
an average of about six deaths a year, are school bus occupants. As for state legislators, Kolosh said they should consider
the statistic that an average of 116 people die each year in school-bus-related crashes, and more needs to be done to keep them safe. “That would include things like moving from just depending on compartmentalization to proper [lap/shoulder] seatbelts, that would include the enforce- ment of making sure that other vehicles are not unsafely
passing school buses,” he added. “It would also include school bus operators making sure they have protocols in place for the safe boarding and [deboarding] of students.” He said school districts leaders can also order new buses with lap/shoulder seatbelts, which will help im- prove safety. “What can they do to help improve loading and unloading procedures?” he advised districts asking themselves. “Is there any opportunity to work with law enforcement to hopefully improve the safety of vehicles that are sharing the road with the school buses, again, they can enforce safe passing procedures.” Long-term, Kolosh said more work can be done proac-
tively rather than reactionary with lawmakers, especially regarding lap/shoulder seatbelt mandates. “Unfortunately, many of these laws are written in
blood after a horrific crash,” he said. “Hopefully that doesn’t have to happen in each and every state to get progressive laws in place.” ●
View an interactive chart from the National Safety Council on school bus related deaths and injuries at
stnonline.com/go/gz.
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Keeping our kids safe with better maintained buses.
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www.f�eetso�.�om 18 School Transportation News • SEPTEMBER 2023
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