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The GAO (U.S. Government Accountability Office) released a report in January 2017 which examines fatal crashes involving school buses from 2000 to 2014, along with federal and state school bus-related laws and regulations. This GAO report shows a relatively low incidence of fatal school bus crashes and an abundance of regulations, some of which vary from state to state. 

“School buses have a strong safety record, but school bus crashes with fatalities and injuries still occur and are often high-profile, since they involve precious cargo, the nation’s schoolchildren,” GAO said in the report. 

School Transportation News said, “During the school year, 23.5 million elementary and secondary school children ride a bus to and from school each day. Add in extracurricular activities, and the school bus system becomes the single largest public transit system in our country. 

GAO found that from 2000 to 2014, there was an annual average of 115 fatal crashes that involved school buses. Those made up 0.3 percent of the 34,835 total fatal motor vehicle crashes on average each year. 

According to the GAO analysis, the school bus driver was determined to be a contributing factor in 27 percent of the fatal school bus crashes, while the school bus itself (for example, a vehicle defect) was cited as a factor in less than 1 percent of the crashes. 

Even though the GAO report covered the years 2000 to 2014, the tragedy of school bus accidents was evident during the last two months of 2016 when there were two tragic school bus crashes; one in Baltimore, Maryland and the other in Chattanooga, Tennessee, both of which made national news, and both involved loss of life and serious charges about driver behavior. 

Schoolbusfleet.com covered the story of the two accidents in its article, “Complacency – The Enemy That Must Be Defeated.”  In the article by Mike Martin, Executive Director of NAPT (National Association for Pupil Transportation) he said “that the public expectation is that large rigs that share the road with the rest of us, including school buses, be driven by professionals who are screened carefully, trained continuously, and drive competently. Most school districts require extensive screening of drivers and continuous training.” 

National minimum training standards were recently established by the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA). These training standards apply to all school bus drivers. Under the final rule, applicants seeking a CDL will be required to demonstrate proficiency in knowledge and behind-the-wheel training on a driving range and on a public road, with training obtained from an instructional program that meets FMCSA standards. 

The National Institute of Health says that school bus accidents are more complex than many other motor vehicle collisions because they involve a larger, heavier vehicle, dozens of passengers, and safety features which vary from state- to-state and bus-to-bus. Accidents involving buses must also deal with the complicated task of assigning and proving liability. 

Determining liability in an accident investigation can be complicated because of the many possibilities. The accident could be caused by a defective design or manufacture. Actual school districts can also become liable if they had knowledge of a faulty bus or an untrained bus driver and did not deal with the situation properly or in a timely manner. 

“Being injured in a school bus accident is traumatic for the injured child/teen and for the whole family. Please contact our Fort Myers Wrongful Death Attorneys for a no-cost consultation,” said Randall Spivey of Spivey Law Firm, Personal Injury Attorneys, P.A.

Fort Myers Vehicle Accident Attorney, Randall L. Spivey is a Board Certified Trial Attorney – the highest recognition for competence bestowed by the Florida Bar and a distinction earned by just one (1%) percent of Florida attorneys.  He has handled over 2,000 personal injury and wrongful death cases throughout Florida.  For a free and confidential consultation to discuss your legal rights, contact the Spivey Law Firm, Personal Injury Attorneys, P.A., in Lee County at 239.337.7483 or toll free at 1.888.477.4839, or by email to Randall@SpiveyLaw.com.  Visit SpiveyLaw.com for more information.  You can contact Spivey Law Firm, Personal Injury Attorneys, P.A.in Charlotte County at 941.764.7748 and in Collier County 239.793.7748.