only six states mandate seatbelts on school buses

i've seen buses go so fast on streets and i always think to myself, why them buses going so fast!

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I was following my son's bus for a field trip. it was going 65 down river road.

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well call the law on the driver.

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and those buses haul arse these days.

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They are governed to a max top speed, depending on locale it's usually between 55 and 65 mph. Even if they were limited to 50 mph, the laws of physics dictate the crash will be severe.

As for seat belts, good luck installing 60 - 90 sets and thinking the kids will actually use them. Bus drivers have enough distractions shuttling your snot-nosed brats to school and back, don't need them monitoring seat belt usage too.

None of the school buses had seatbelts on them when I was in school.

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only six states mandate seatbelts on school buses

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That's criminal

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Since 2004, NHTSA found, 106 people overall, both children and adults, have been killed while riding in or driving a school bus. Of the 106 people killed, 61 were passengers and 45 were drivers. That works out to about six passenger fatalities per year

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School bus fatalities are very very rare. I am not against seat belts but it would be an enormous expense and how many kids would actually belt up?

There are much better ways to spend money and save the lives of a lot more kids.

1) Seat belts increase evacuation time and, with very young children, can make evacuation impossible
2) Fewer than 10 people die a year on average in school bus accidents. Juice ain't worth the squeeze.
3) Buses would likely only be able to realistically have lap belts. At the speeds buses would be typically be expected to wreck, the lap belt only configuration has a decent chance of causing worse injuries than being unrestrained.
4) Kids bounce.

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1) Seat belts increase evacuation time and, with very young children, can make evacuation impossible
2) Fewer than 10 people die a year on average in school bus accidents. Juice ain't worth the squeeze.
3) Buses would likely only be able to realistically have lap belts. At the speeds buses would be typically be expected to wreck, the lap belt only configuration has a decent chance of causing worse injuries than being unrestrained.
4) Kids bounce.

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This... the wreck yesterday looked bad but that bus is designed to separate from the frame as a safety precaution for just this type of situation. The box slides forward or backwards off the frame instead of coming to such a sudden stop... Thus absorbing SOME of the force.

Seatbelts are uncomfortable and make you look like a nerd

If the run of the mill car or truck hits a school bus. The car or truck is not driving away. The bus might move an inch or so if it's stopped.

A bus is only in danger from 18 wheelers, armored trucks, other buses, maybe one of those land yachts.

A train will just outright barrel through it like anything.

Theyre massive steel cages with lots of cushion to bounce in. Seatbelts would only hinder evacuation/rescue if an 18 wheelers or driver error rolled the damn thing.

I've been in a stopped school bus that was hit by a pickup going 40. The bus only lurched forward then back and lost some paint.