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New Federal Rule to Make School Buses Safer
New Federal Rule to Make School Buses Safer, Allow Districts to Use Federal Funds to Pay for Seat Belt Installations, U.S. Secretary of Transportation Mary E. Peters Announces
New federal rules will make the nation’s 474,000 school buses safer by requiring higher seat backs, mandating lap and shoulder belts on small school buses and setting safety standards for seat belts on large school buses, U.S. Secretary of Transportation Mary E. Peters announced today.
“Even though riding in school buses is the safest form of travel in America today, any accident is still a tragedy,” said Secretary Peters. “Taken together, these steps are designed with a single purpose, making children safer.”
Secretary Peters said the new rule requires all new school buses in America to be equipped with 24-inch-high seat backs, instead of the 20-inch-high seat backs required today. Higher seat backs will help prevent taller and heavier children from being thrown over the seat in a crash, decreasing the chance of injury to them and the children in front of them.
She added that all new school buses weighing less than five tons will be required to have three-point seat belts. She noted that the lap and shoulder belts better protect children in small buses, adding that smaller school buses are more vulnerable because they don’t absorb shock as well as larger buses.
“Even though riding in school buses is the safest form of travel in America today, any accident is still a tragedy,” said Secretary Peters. “Taken together, these steps are designed with a single purpose, making children safer.”
Secretary Peters said the new rule requires all new school buses in America to be equipped with 24-inch-high seat backs, instead of the 20-inch-high seat backs required today. Higher seat backs will help prevent taller and heavier children from being thrown over the seat in a crash, decreasing the chance of injury to them and the children in front of them.
She added that all new school buses weighing less than five tons will be required to have three-point seat belts. She noted that the lap and shoulder belts better protect children in small buses, adding that smaller school buses are more vulnerable because they don’t absorb shock as well as larger buses.
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