Why Don’t School Buses Require Seat Belts?

Very. According to experts and the Canada Safety Council, it’s one of the safest methods of road transportation with no evidence demonstrating that the presence of seatbelts would increase safety. Furthermore, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) in the United States reported that less than 1% of all fatal motor vehicle traffic crashes were related to school transportation. These factors make for an almost impeccable safety record.

Considering all of the safety features in every school bus—specialized brake systems, lighting, emergency exits, and escape hatches in the roof—in addition to being bigger, heavier, and higher, the element of safety has been applied to every possible angle. These are all in place to keep school buses from getting into accidents, and if they do, they are constructed in such a way to prioritize the safety of everyone aboard.

School buses are most often used to transport children, and the only adult in the vehicle is there to drive. In the instance where there was an accident, the driver would likely have to unbuckle the passengers, a time-consuming process that could prove dangerous for others.

The high padded seats of the average full-size school bus are filled with energy-absorbing material meant to take the impact of a collision and encase the passenger, protecting them for fatal injuries. They’re also heavily anchored to the floor; if there were seatbelts in place and whiplash were to occur, a passenger’s head could hit the back of the seat in front of them as opposed to the whole body, resulting in greater injury.

It’s not because they aren’t tethered to their seats by a seatbelt that passengers should be running around the school bus. If you’ve chosen a standard school bus to transport your group to a destination, make sure that everyone follows these steps to ensure they have a safe and enjoyable ride.