School Bus Safety Inside & Outside

School Bus Safety Inside & Outside Howard “Mac” Dashney Executive Director MAPT 517.886.0881 (T) 517.886.0882 (F) mdashney@mapt.org

School Bus Safety Inside & Outside What is happening today? Nationally 440,000 school buses transporting 23,500,000 students a total of 47,000,000 daily rides Michigan 18,000 school buses transporting 860,000 students a total of 1,720,000 daily rides

School Bus Safety Inside & Outside What can be expected this year? Nationally 7.9 Billion rides covering 4.3 Billion miles Michigan 309,600,000 annual rides covering 167,184,000 miles

School Bus Safety Inside & Outside Fatalities 1990 – 2000* 1,450 School bus-related fatalities 969 (67%) Occupants of other vehicles 35 (2%) Other non-occupants 322 (22%) Outside school bus 74 (5%) Struck by other vehicles 248 (17%) Struck by school bus 124 (9%) Inside school bus 90 (6%) School bus passengers 34 (2%) School bus drivers School bus occupants vs School bus pedestrians 446 inside and outside school bus 322 (72%) outside of school bus 124 (27%) inside of school bus *DOT, NHTSA, NCS&A, “Traffic Safety Facts 2000: School Buses,”

School Bus Safety Inside & Outside Probabilities – Chances of Fatal Injuries Nationally 3.6 Times more likely to be fatally injured while walking to/from school bus than while riding inside a school bus. 1/250,000,000 chance outside bus 1/700,000,000 chance inside bus Michigan No fatality inside a bus since Spring 1989. Annually average 3 fatalities outside school bus. 1/100,000,000 chance outside bus

School Bus Safety Inside & Outside Why should you expect this performance? Size Mass Design

School Bus Safety Inside & Outside Size Width – 96” (8 feet) Length – 16’ to 40’ Height – 9’ to 10’6” Ground clearance 24” to body panel Ground clearance 12” to entrance door Ground to floor 44” (3’8”) Ground to seat cushion 63” (5’3”) Seat back height 24” – 27” Inside aisle width 12” Passenger capacity 11 – 90

School Bus Safety Inside & Outside Mass 10,000 lbs (5 tons) to 40,000 lbs (20 tons) Comparison of vehicles Car Van Truck 5’ wide 6’ wide 8’ wide 12’ long 16’ long 20-65’ long 3,200 lbs 4,800 lbs 7,500-120,000 lbs 5’ high 7’ high 13’ high 91% RV 4% RV 1.4% RV

School Bus Safety Inside & Outside Design Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards (FMVSS) specific for school buses FMVSS #111 Rearview Mirrors FMVSS #121 Air Brake System ABS FMVSS #131 School Bus Pedestrian Safety Device FMVSS #210 Seat Belt Assembly Anchorages FMVSS #213 Child Restraint Systems FMVSS #217 Bus Emergency Exits, Window Retention, and Release FMVSS #220 School Bus Rollover Protection FMVSS #221 School Bus Body Joint Strength FMVSS #222 School Bus Seating & Crash Protection FMVSS #301 Fuel System Integrity FMVSS #302 Flammability of Interior Materials

School Bus Safety Inside & Outside Design Features Alternating Overhead Red Flashing Lights (4 light and 8 light systems) Stop arms, lighted 8 sided signs - STOP Crossing bars, 6-8’ bar for peds to/from bus Single right front entrance door Emergency exits – rear/side doors, side and rear window exits, roof hatches Fuel tank caged and baffled and honey combed Emergency Equipment – First Aid Kit, Flares, Fire Extinguisher, & Reflective Triangles

School Bus Safety Inside & Outside Our Worst Nightmare! Erie Township Truck hauling 120,000 lbs of steel hits bus carrying 61 children and adults

School Bus Safety Inside & Outside Third of four school buses turning left pulls in front of steeling hauling truck going straight at this intersection.

School Bus Safety Inside & Outside Safety Standards and Features prevent fatalities 48 passengers injured

School Bus Safety Inside & Outside Truck crashes into driver’s side at the rear axle. Penetrates 2-4’ into school bus. Body joint, roof strength, seat compartmentalization protects passengers. Bus & Truck respond as designed

School Bus Safety Inside & Outside Child at point of impact ejected due to side emergency door opening & tearing body – survives! Occupants’ compartment withstands penetration by truck Bodies of bus & truck separate to reduce force of impact and penetration.

School Bus Safety Inside & Outside Summary High Profile Vehicle Frequency & Opportunity @ Risk Size, Mass, & Design Low Probability Catastrophic Events Focus on problem – 3.6 times more dangerous outside than inside bus Random operation vs planned sequence