Why don't all school busses have seatbelts? Can't they see how it could save lives?

Question

I get so mad when I see that kids have died when their bus flipped over that I want to see someone get sued for damages but who do you deal with? Who's fault is it? The school's?

Answer 1

take a look at buses they are kinda big with lots of flashing lights and special laws protecting them. a car hitting a bus could not flip it over and the impact would be below the childrens feet. I don't believe I have ever heard of a child being killed in a bus accident. can you imagine un buckling 50 kids while the bus is on fire. This question comes up weekly on answeres. when you sue the school distric you really end up sueing the tax payer since they are the ones who ultimatley pay. be careful what you wish for you may get it.

Answer 2

I wouldn't say it's the schools fault.  Check out this link: someone asked the same question, and this guy gives a pretty good answer, along with some facts regarding this issue in America.

http://www.straightdope.com/classics/a98...

This next link shows arguments mandating seat belts in school buses.  It also shows how "The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) has concluded that seat belts would provide little, if any, added protection for children involved a school bus accident."  The point of this article is to "educate parents and other concerned citizens on the reasons the NHTSA has not made seat belts in school buses mandatory. "  The article also shows that the reason for NOT having seatbelts isnt necessarily a cost issue, but kind of how the buses are built.  So take a look if you wanna!

http://www.googobits.com/articles/362-wh...

Personally, I think its an issue of cost, coupled with the fact that safety boards dont mandate it.  I agree that something should definitely be done about it.

Good luck & hope this helps you out!

Answer 3

sure don't know why...

Answer 4

I think the bus company does't want to spend the extra money because they're cheap.

Answer 5

tax cuts, man

Answer 6

because no one wears them if you do your a chump.

Answer 7

what makes you think it would save anyone? have you done some type of testing on school bus safety? are you some sort of expert? maybe test show its safer to not have them. i mean its not a minivan its a bus.

Answer 8

The county.  The buses are owned by the county not the schools.  But actually, some studies show just the opposite, that seat belts cause more injury than not having them.  The buses now are designed with tall padded seats.  I remember when I was a kid, the seats were teeth level and wrapped in a metal bar!  LOL!  Back in the day when we played with steel toys and got banged up outside every day....those were the good ole days....haha!

Answer 9

It's a Catch 22. I have a bus license and drove a school bus. The problem is in the Emergency procedures. If a bus has to be evacuated immediately, in case of fire, say, or gets stuck on a railway track with a train racing down on it, tangled, uncooperative seatbelts can impede the smooth evacuation of the kids, especially since there's only one driver to make sure everybody gets off safely.

But then, of course, you have the problem of serious injury due to collision. However, i think the statistics show that these incidents are rare and when they happen, unfortunate. But better a driver be able to safely evacuate an entire bus of kids rather than fail to do so and have them all perish because one kid couldn't get their seatbelt off and the driver had to stop shooing all the kids off the bus to help.

Answer 10

Compartmentalization, a concept seen frequently on commercial airplanes, involves seating passengers in rows of padded seats with cushioned backs.

The belief is that during frontal or rear impact, the most common types of wrecks involving school buses, passengers would either be pushed back into their seats or thrown forward into the padded backs of the row ahead.

The use of seat belts might require stiffer seats, which would negate the theory of compartmentalization. It is also feared that some students would receive internal injuries from seat belts through a process called submarining, the tendency for a body to slide downwards during impact.

Seat belts on school buses may also hamper rescue or evacuation efforts, as adults or older students may have to spend precious minutes unbuckling young or disoriented passengers.

Unruly students could also use the heavy buckles as makeshift weapons, creating even more of a safety hazard.

There is also the argument that seat belts would only protect passengers of school buses during unusual events such as roll-overs or flips, not other possible accidents such as fires or submersion.

Considering the expense of retrofitting current school buses or replacing entire fleets with approved seat belt systems, the benefits of seat belt use do not currently outweigh the liabilities.

Answer 11

You should bring it up at a city council meeting. That is really an important thing that they just seem to be ignoring.

Answer 12

I have been told that in the case of school buses it is actually safer for the kids to not be restrained in case of accident or emergency...........That is according to research and the head driver in our area...Believe me I had the same question because I have two school kids myself

Answer 13

because more kids would get hurt by them hitting each other in the head with the seatbelts than would get hurt by not having them. Have you seen how heavy the airline seatbelt buckles are, imagine those in the hands of 6 year olds.

Plus I am sure that easy exiting of a bus if it is in danger is an issue too. If you have young kids they may not be savy enough to get out of their seatbelts in the event of a wreck or fire or something.

Answer 14

i think that it should be a law for all school buses need seat belts installed for the safety of the kids

Answer 15

Not all young children can get them selves out of a seat belt.  It would be too much stress on the Driver to try and unbuckle 60 kids in an emergency situation.  I guess it has been discussed for a long time.  It depends on the county or state weather they have em or not.

Answer 16

It's the laws, they require all of us to wear seat belts, but a bus full of kids doesn't seem to matter! It irks me too.  Mostly because the speed limit on our road is 15 mph.  The bus comes blazing down the icy roads at every bit of 45 mph.  To me that's double the reason to have seatbelts in busses.  Apparently the judicial and budget side of the argument find it to expensive to protect the kids.  If I get caught in my vehicle with a child not properly restrained I'm in some serious pooh. I find it very disturbing how the bus drivers around where I live drive, there is only 1 that I've seen so far that drives safely.  Background checks aren't very thourough either.  They are only going to aim the laws where it makes them money and doesn't cost any more tax dollars, it works out to be that simple.  They talk a big game about child safety, but only pursue the money makers in all aspects.

Answer 17

AND THEN WHEN A BUS TIPS OVER IN A RIVER OR SOME BODY OF WATER AND ALL THE KIDS DROWN THEN U WANT TO SUE SOMEONE AGAIN...

U R THE PROBLEM IN TODAYS SOCIETY...  PPPFFFF SOCCER MOM...

Answer 18

the sits are supposed to have tall backs, but idk?

Answer 19

Well, thats a very good question.

Do you think everyone would wear them? How are they going to force them to wear them.

Seat belts in school busses may not be the answer. In fact i do beilve that it could make the situation worse. Busses have very little structural support so if there is a colision to the side it would make it worse because the child would be strapped in a death seat.

If there is a rollover the sides of the bus would crush the passenger and they couldnt get out of the way.

If they are not strapped in they will at least have a chance of survivial.

It would be the Bus Drivers Fault for the accident and that it.

Answer 20

it's the fault of whoever hit the bus because bus drivers are amazing.

oh, and accidents happen.

thats why they're called accidents.