1943: Charlotte County, Virginia. Boy in back is member of safety patrol. One always went along to help keep order on the bus. Philip Bonn, photographer. Farm Security Administration - Office of War Information Photograph Collection (Library of Congress)

Standees on America's School Buses

On the one hand it is claimed that school buses do not need seat belts, because of the compartmentalization feature engineered in to school buses. The National Traffic Highway Safety Administration NHTSA recommends in their advisory, "The Number of Persons That Can Safely Sit on a School Bus Seat," that Federal motor vehicle safety standard No. 222, "School Bus Passenger Seating and Crash Protection" requires that the interior of large buses provide occupant protection so that children are protected without the need to buckle-up. Yet, some states violate the very engineering that is supposed to help keep kids safe. Eleven states currently allow students to stand in the aisle on their school buses -- transporting students up to 20 percent over the school bus rated capacity. Doing this allows school districts and bus companies to transport more students with fewer buses and fewer drivers. In Pennsylvania and other states a school bus caught with students or luggage forced part-way in to the aisle is considered

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unsafe and prohibited. Pennsylvania State troopers do not hesitate to hold an overcrowded bus. The bus is detained until another bus arrives to transport the students exceeding Pennsylvania school bus safety standards. Some school boards complain that the police are too strict. These choose to ignore the reality that when students are outside their seating compartment the students are no longer protected -- it is virtually the same as parents transporting children without child car seats and seat belts buckled. Parents and schools should lend considerable thought to stopping this kind of risky cost-cutting. Or, if overcrowding the buses is not really that unsafe -- apparently, eleven states believe this to be the case -- then should the rest of the country save some money by exceeding the school bus seating capacity? The following article is a concise look at this issue.

Original story title, Standees on the School Bus, School Bus Safety Fact Sheet, published by the National Safety Council, From the Motor Transportation Division/School Transportation Section School Bus Safety Fact Sheets (handy guides with concise information)

By The National Safety Council
The Nation - Approximately 24 million pupils are transported on school buses each day. The National Highway Transportation Safety Administration (NHTSA) Highway Safety Program Standard Guideline 17 specifically states that every student must be seated before the bus is in motion. Under Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard No. 222, school bus passenger safety is acccomplished either through "compartmentalization" or lap belts, depending on the Gross Vehicle Weight Rating of the bus. Some states and school districts have policies that allow students to stand on school buses. Standees are not afforded any protection in crashes or sudden driving maneuvers.

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Since the safety of pupils in school buses is of great concern to the public, and to parents in particular, the School Transportation Section of the National Safety Council recommends that a seat be provided for each child who rides on a school bus and that each child be seated before the bus is put in motion.

Note: Although the information and recommendations contained in this publication have been compiled from sources believed to be reliable, other or additional safety measures may be required under particular circumstances.

NHTSA recommendation:
"The Number of Persons That Can Safely Sit on a School Bus Seat"

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The National Safety Council invites you to visit their new "Driver Safety" page. Topics addressed in the NSC's new "Safety Agenda for the Nation" addresses critical areas where Americans are dying or being injured in record numbers.

Web site visitors will find driving safety tips, resources, games and products to keep their families safe on the road. Also included are articles on cell phone safety, multitasking, graduated licensing, and statistics on motor vehicle crashes and their related costs to the nation. The site also provides links to the NSC's highly successful Air Bag & Seat Belt Safety Campaign, the National Seat Belt Coalition, and Fact Sheets on Auto and School Bus Safety along with links to pertinent sites such as the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration and others.

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