The Transporter
Dedicated to the safe transportation of our children.
PREMIERE EDITION

©M. H. West & Co., Inc.

Being Safe Means Buckling Up

How many times have you passed a bus and children are standing and waving to you? I'm sure you can at least vaguely remember doing this yourself or watching your own children do it. Do you know how high those potholes in the road make you bounce out of your seat? You would be amazed. The school transportation industry has gone full force ahead in the debate over the use of seat belts and child restraining seats in school buses.

In a time when seating restraints for small children are mandatory in vehicles, such as cars, trucks, and vans, buses have been the inevitable question mark. Should we enforce using seating restraints on a bus? If you look at test data, the answer is yes. The National Highway Transportation Safety Administration conducted a crash test using dummies that were the size of preschool children. They found that the dummies were safest when placed in a seating restraint such as a car or booster seat. In an evaluation of the effectiveness of the seats done by the NHTSA, they found that they are 71% effective in preventing fatalities, 67% effective in reducing the need for hospitalization, and 50% effective in preventing minor injuries.

Activity Corner

Provided to keep children stimulated and happy, the Activity Corner lists ideas for monitors to use on the ride to and from school.

Alphabet Game - Starting with 'A', go through the alphabet and name things that Mommy buys at the grocery store.

Purse Game - Show the children the contents of a purse or bag. Have them see how many types of groups they can put the objects into (color, size, shape, etc.)

What If Game - Ask the children situational questions (i.e. safety) and have them answer the questions.

Do you have an innovative and exciting idea you would like to share? Call or write to us about it.

So why are child safety seats not installed in every vehicle yet? Sometimes it is the lack of funding, other times, it is a matter of buses not being equipped with factory installed lap belts that are used to secure the seats. Some agencies have placed lap belts in the vehicles themselves. The manufacturers of the vehicles do not recommend using belts that were not installed by them though because of the risk of improper installation.

Speaking of improper installation, an extraordinarily large problem with child seating restraints is the fact that they are not installed properly. According to Joey Ledford of The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, "at least 85 percent of all child safety seats protecting our most precious cargo aren't properly installed." The number could be even higher. A large number of injuries occur from one person colliding into another. Astonishingly, a collision at 30 mph can hurl a 20 pound child with 600 pounds of force. Can you imagine having 600 pounds of something dropped on you?

So what do we do about keeping our preschool aged children safe on their ride to school? How do we come up with the resources to get the seating restraints? The National Transportation Center for School Children may be able to help.

Transportation Resources

www.ptsi.org - Pupil Transportation Safety Institute
www.nhtsa.dot.gov - National Highway Traffic Safety Administration
www.stnonline.com - School Transportation News

National Transportation Center
for School Children
700 East Main St., Suite 904
Richmond, VA 23218-0548
Phone (804)782-1938
Fax (804)782-9771
E-mail: mhwestcon@aol.com
Website:  www.mhwest.com/NTCPC.htm

 

 
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M. H. West & Co., Inc.
700 East Main Street, Suite 904, P. O. Box 548 - Richmond, Virginia 23218-0548
TEL 804.782.1938  FAX 804.782.9771
© 2007 M. H. West & Co., Inc..