Current:Home > ContactIn a first, one company is making three-point seatbelts standard on all school buses -WealthFocus Academy
In a first, one company is making three-point seatbelts standard on all school buses
View
Date:2025-04-24 23:02:02
On any given school day, more than 25 million kids ride a school bus, one of the safest vehicles on the road — with one exception: the vast majority of those buses have no seatbelts.
Videos of accidents involving school buses show kids bouncing around like sneakers in a dryer, and it's not just the students who are in danger.
Doug Williamson's sister, 5th grade teacher Jennifer Williamson, was killed along with a student on a school bus in 2018 when a dump truck crushed the bus while riding on a New Jersey highway.
Jennifer Williamson was a beloved teacher who taught in the district her entire career. There's now a scholarship in her name and people still leave things on her brother's porch in her memory years later.
The bus actually had lap belts, but not the much safer three-point safety belts.
"If they all had safety belts that day, it would have been a different outcome," Doug Williamson said.
The crash led the state to pass more robust seatbelt safety laws.
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration and the National Transportation Safety Board have long said seatbelts are safest, and a crash test at IMMI's Indiana facility observed by CBS News shows it. A box truck moving at 40 mph hurtled into a stationary school bus. The crash dummies inside wearing three-point seat belts barely moved, while the unbelted dummies were sent flying.
Over one 10-year period, 1,110 people were killed in school bus crashes, an average of 111 people a year. As a result, eight states have laws on the books requiring new school buses to have seat belts.
Mark Rosekind, the former administrator of the National Highway Transportation Safety Administration, recommended seat belts on school buses back in 2015, but many in the industry fought back, often citing the cost — more than $8,500 per bus.
"They use that as an excuse not to take action in an area they know could save lives," Rosekind said.
Drivers are also at risk, as until recently, none of the iconic yellow school buses came equipped with airbags for the driver.
Starting this fall, bus manufacturer Blue Bird's new buses will offer three-point seatbelts for every passenger. Next year, they will include driver airbags at no extra cost, thanks to IMMI.
"This is an industry first," Blue Bird President Britton Smith said. "First time that there's been three-point lap shoulder belts as standard equipment."
Safety advocacy groups and agencies have been calling for these features for years. Rosekind is hoping Blue Bird's changes spread throughout the industry and the country.
"This should be a gauntlet. This should be the standard," he said.
Mark StrassmannMark Strassmann is CBS News' senior national correspondent based in Atlanta. He covers a wide range of stories, including space exploration. Strassmann is also the senior national correspondent for "Face the Nation."
veryGood! (142)
Related
- Travis Hunter, the 2
- A History of Prince Harry & Prince William's Feud: Where They Stand Before King Charles III's Coronation
- For one rape survivor, new abortion bans bring back old, painful memories
- 24-Hour Flash Deal: Save $100 on a Dyson Airwrap Bundle
- SFO's new sensory room helps neurodivergent travelers fight flying jitters
- Today’s Climate: May 19, 2010
- Ozone, Mercury, Ash, CO2: Regulations Take on Coal’s Dirty Underside
- Climate Change Is Happening in the U.S. Now, Federal Report Says — in Charts
- Skins Game to make return to Thanksgiving week with a modern look
- Vanderpump Rules: Ariana Madix Catches Tom Sandoval Lying Amid Raquel Leviss Affair
Ranking
- Who are the most valuable sports franchises? Forbes releases new list of top 50 teams
- Vanderpump Rules' Ariana Madix Reunites With New Man Daniel Wai for NYC Date Night
- The Truth About Emma Watson's 5-Year Break From Acting
- The Truth About Emma Watson's 5-Year Break From Acting
- Paris Hilton, Nicole Richie return for an 'Encore,' reminisce about 'The Simple Life'
- Life Kit: How to 'futureproof' your body and relieve pain
- Martin Hoffert
- Trump Takes Ax to Science and Other Advisory Committees, Sparking Backlash
Recommendation
Louvre will undergo expansion and restoration project, Macron says
Exxon’s Business Ambition Collided with Climate Change Under a Distant Sea
Bodies of 3 men recovered from Davenport, Iowa, building collapse site, officials say
Why Pete Davidson's Saturday Night Live Episode Was Canceled
Have Dry, Sensitive Skin? You Need To Add These Gentle Skincare Products to Your Routine
This Mexican clinic is offering discreet abortions to Americans just over the border
The VA says it will provide abortions in some cases even in states where it's banned
Get $135 Worth of Tarte Cosmetics Products for Just $59 Before This Deal Sells Out