Technology meets training to help school bus drivers detect students at school bus stops as well as those that remain on board after routes end
Written by Carol Brzozowski
S
chool bus loading and unloading has histori- cally been a safety risk for students, leading to injuries and deaths. While numbers have de- creased over the decades, experts point out one
incident is one too many. Much of the conversation around the “Danger Zone,” the 10- to 12-foot perimeter around school buses during student loading and unloading, revolves around illegal passing motorists. But that topic only covers half of the safety issue. Paul Abbot, Gatekeeper’s director of customer support, noted that a primary aspect of bus driver training is Dan- ger Zone awareness. “I always tell people, you’ve got two pilots on [an] airplane, you’ve got flight attendants. Airplanes just don’t leave the ground. But you’re having to drive that 30,000 pound vehicle in traffic and count kids on a bus off a bus before you leave.” As School Transportation News reported last fall, the
2022-2023 National School Bus Loading and Unloading Survey recorded three student fatalities. Motorists illegally passing school buses in Pennsylva- nia and Wisconsin killed two female teenage students attempting to board their school bus—with red lights activated and stop arms extended—in the morning, both in rural areas.
22 School Transportation News • SEPTEMBER 2024
A New York school bus struck and killed a 5-year-old
male while pulling away from its morning stop as the boy ran after it. The driver was unaware the student had been struck. Weather and road conditions were clear in all inci-
dents. The fatalities occurred on a city street, a county road and a state highway. The survey is based on official police reports of inci-
dents where the school bus was at the scene. School bus driver trainer and long-time industry consultant Dick Fischer pointed out at least three other incidents oc- curred that school year could have been included. Still, the survey figures are the second lowest since
data was first compiled in 1970. The lowest was in 2019 with two recorded deaths. The Kansas State Department of Education, which
conducts the survey, said in a statement that the re- sults show the “continuing need for forceful, advanced instruction to school bus drivers and students as well as the need to increase our efforts to thoroughly inform drivers across the country about the requirements of the school bus law.” Fischer, who received an STN Lifetime Achievement
Award in July for dedicating over 70 of his 89 years to stu- dent safety, noted that even something like suspending bus routes for a lack of drivers creates safety concerns.
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52 |
Page 53 |
Page 54 |
Page 55 |
Page 56 |
Page 57 |
Page 58 |
Page 59 |
Page 60 |
Page 61 |
Page 62 |
Page 63 |
Page 64 |
Page 65 |
Page 66 |
Page 67 |
Page 68 |
Page 69 |
Page 70 |
Page 71 |
Page 72 |
Page 73 |
Page 74 |
Page 75 |
Page 76
