President's Perspective

Recently there has been much pressure to put seat-belts in school buses. A movement is advocating the installation of seat-belts on school buses, against the advice of many transportation experts.

Tests show that using lap belts on forward-facing bus seats could actually increase the risk of head injuries to occupants in a severe frontal collision. Moreover, combination lap and shoulder belts would require stiffer seats, which could increase injuries to unbelted riders - and school bus drivers cannot guarantee that the belts would always be worn.

Seat-belts were designed for cars, and have saved thousands of lives. School buses are designed with safety (but not seat-belts) in mind; they are not built like cars. Buses have a body-on-frame design. The problem is that seat-belts must be attached to the frame. Until buses are constructed with a unibody design, seat-belts will not protect occupants in the same way they do in cars.

On average during the past 10 years, one child per year dies inside a school bus in Canada. The fact that most mishaps occur outside the bus is addressed in the latest changes to the standard. High-backed seats, improved side impact design and padded stanchions serve as passive restraints which prevent serious injuries to the head and torso in a crash. High-backed seats also spread the impact over a larger surface of the child's body. In addition, the size of the bus provides protection in a collision.

Federal standards administered by Transport Canada apply to the design and construction of school buses, making them a very safe mode of transportation. Current standards apply the most effective means of protection for children taking the school bus. Transport Canada leads the world in its work on school bus safety.

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Safety Canada January 1999

Seat-belts in School buses?