Seat belts on school buses coming, but debate goes on

Hillsborough will begin using buses with seat belts next week. Pinellas will start in April. But are those buses really safer?

By MELANIE AVE, Times Staff Writer
© St. Petersburg Times
published March 7, 2002

TAMPA -- School bus driver Roger Epps was minutes away from dropping off 30 students Wednesday morning at Chiaramonte Elementary School when the right side of the bus was struck by a van that had run a stop sign.

The accident dented the side of the bus, cracked windows and hurled children onto the floor. Sixteen boys and girls were taken by ambulance to Tampa General Hospital with cuts and bruises.

The accident, which resulted in a ticket for the van driver, raises an important question: Would seat belts have prevented injuries?

The bus in Wednesday's accident did not have belts.

In years to come, that will no longer be the case.

Since Jan. 1, 2001, Florida school districts have been required by law to buy buses equipped with seat belts. It could be a decade before districts replace their entire fleets with the new buses since the state recommends buses be replaced after 10 to 12 years.

But experts, including school officials, continue to debate whether the buses are safer with belts.

The Florida PTA pushed for the new state law.

"That's one thing we are constantly telling our children, 'Buckle up,' in our own vehicles," said Deborah Woodard, president of the Pinellas County Council of PTAs. "But we're not reinforcing that when they go to school. It's a real safety issue."

Hillsborough will begin using its first four buses with seat belts next week. By the end of the school year, the district plans to have 96 such buses added to its 1,200-vehicle fleet.

Pinellas County's 600-bus fleet is awaiting its first 46 buses, which are expected to arrive by April 1.

But Terry Palmer, Pinellas' director of transportation, doesn't think the buses are safer than those without seat belts.

He says the seat belts on school buses have lap harnesses but no shoulder straps, which doesn't provide the same level of protection.

"If you look at statistics overall, school buses are the safest form of transportation in the world," Palmer said.

Tampa Fire Rescue Capt. Bill Wade said studies aren't clear about whether lap belts on school buses prevent serious injuries or deaths. Some research, however, does show that the belts may be a liability by causing abdominal or pelvic injuries during an accident.

"The primary reason is lap belts are old technology," he said. "Buses are made to carry children spanning 12 to 15 years of different ages. The difference between a 5- and 15-year-old in size is significant."

Hillsborough school spokesman Mark Hart said he can see both sides of the debate, but that doesn't change the new requirement. "We're mandated to do it," he said. "So we're going to follow the law."

While school districts will have buses with seat belts, it isn't clear who will actually make children wear them.

Adam Shores, spokesman with the state Department of Education, said the law specifically says district employees are not responsible if children who are not wearing seat belts are injured.

"We have to instruct the kids on how to use them," Palmer said. "And we have to instruct the kids they should use them. But drivers aren't required to stop and check that. So whether they do or not, it's up to them."

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