These buses are generally fitted with car seats and have specially designed child restraint systems on the seats.
They have to be equipped with either lap belts or lap/shoulder belts on every designated seating position. It could happen like this. Another recent study, sponsored by the California Air Resources Board, looked at several Los Angeles school buses built between 1975-2002. In fact, NHTSA statistics show that 58% of annual student fatalities during normal school travel hours happen while the student is traveling with a teen driver, 23% with an adult driver and only 1% on a school bus. They often utilize car seats and specialized restraint systems. 0000013071 00000 n
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The United States Department of Transportation requires many additional safety features be built into every school bus which are not found on any other public or private vehicle. It is mandatory to procure user consent prior to running these cookies on your website. Painted with bright … Drivers are also trained to follow procedures intended to prevent them from accidentally running over their passengers. That might mean some schools would have to buy more buses, or else tell kids to find another way to school. Vehicle safety checks are performed before each route. It’s safer than walking, riding a bike or even riding in the family car. 0000076526 00000 n
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In addition, the name and telephone number of the bus must be written on the body of the bus. These options may be within reach even for schools operating on meager budgets, because grant money from many sources is available. 8: Placement of mirrors on the school bus. As little children are prone to falling asleep suddenly, the Child Check-Mate is an electronic reminder system that is installed on board to remind the drivers to check the bus and see if there are children that have slept off and not got down at the designated bus stops. US Corporate Headquarters
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School bus drivers are well trained. Before stepping off the bus, look to be sure a car isn't coming. Also, a much cleaner diesel fuel called ultra-low sulfur diesel will be available nationwide in October 2006.
It's easy to imagine how unrestrained kids on the high side of the overturned bus could have been hurt, or could have injured others, by tumbling out of their seats. 0000031509 00000 n
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NHTSA has established minimum safety requirements for school buses that are more stringent than those for other types of buses.
"It shouldn't be something that scares people into taking their kids off the school bus.". WebMD does not provide medical advice, diagnosis or treatment. 0000037020 00000 n
The new Thomas Built Buses each costs about $118,000, with less than $5,000 of that amount coming from the new safety features, school officials said.
Typically more than 50 hours of classroom and behind-the-wheel training. Our strict no-idling policy reduces school bus emissions. Home → The NHTSA contends that compartmentalization alone is adequate crash protection, and that to mandate seat belts in addition would be messing with success. 0000002386 00000 n
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They found levels of diesel fumes to be four times higher inside the buses than in cars driving in front of the buses. The conventional big, yellow school bus, however, is designed to meet a different federal safety standard. ����c��u�2v�`�x�-JK��S4vQ�$���Z-.�`�a|�x��;k0W��h��\3S��B�^:~l�p"��dm�� �Kь��;����Q#��U�0�%W�i�4�}���U����@U�[b��-ɋ2�-rݣXk��a�%N��#O�:�!4���NVJ+��}ŵQI��Xz�Zj�c�,=�i�33`}�؛�t�ݔ{w�eOGa�o�0��� LP��` �3
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Preventive maintenance inspections are conducted by certified mechanics, ensuring buses run at peak performance. The mirrors should be placed and adjusted in compliance with motor vehicle safety standards set for the purpose.
"That issue has never come up," Collins says. 23 State House Station Child Check-Mate System® is an on-board electronic reminder system that reminds drivers to check for sleeping children before leaving the bus. Researchers from the National Resources Defense Council and the University of California Berkeley tested actual school buses used to transport San Francisco school kids. A key safety concept in full-sized school buses is called "compartmentalization." Studies have shown that in a single day, hundreds of thousands of cars will pass stopped school buses illegally, and that's not because a stopped bus is inconspicuous.
The suit alleges that the company exposes children to hazardous diesel exhaust, and therefore, under California law, must warn parents and anyone riding on its buses about the danger. 0000031999 00000 n
Fingerprinting, physical examinations (including drug and alcohol testing), training, licensing and permitting of school bus drivers.