A recent motion from the Center for Auto Safety and the National Coalition for School Bus Safety that would mandate school buses across the country to install seat belts has been denied, according to news reports.
The rejection came from The National Highway Safety Administration (NHSA), who maintained that school buses are one of the safest vehicles on the roadways. The Administration came to the conclusion that cost of installing seat belts outweighed the potential safety benefits.
Arthur Yeager, a member of the Coalition, responded that the decision, “just confirms the long history of NHSA in opposition to child restraints in school buses. There is certain hypocrisy in their supporting seat belts in virtually every other type of vehicle under their control except for school buses…From their first ride home from the hospital, they have been secured by a restraining device. The very first time kids ever experience a ride without a seat belt is when they get on school buses.”
School buses of a smaller stature do require seatbelts, but the NHSA felt that seat belt requirements would be too hard to enforce in general.
Currently, California does require students to wear seatbelts, along with Texas, the only other state to do so. However, the coalition estimates that 500,000 school buses will take children to and from school without seatbelts during this school year.
, the safety of this nation’s children is extremely important to me. If you or someone you know has been injured in an bus accident and believe another party was at fault, I urge you to contact a personal injury lawyer to discuss your rights.
