The New Concerns that Come with First-Time Seat Belts

Now that the Janesville (Wis.) School District is set to get its first-ever school buses with three-point seat belts in time for the 2009-2010 school year, the Janesville Gazette reports that the school board is trying to hammer out new rules about seat belt use including the number students by grade level who can be assigned to one seat, and when it is safe for the driver to beginning driving.

The current proposed rules in Janesville include: “The driver will not move the bus until all students are seated, buckled and have visually indicated to the driver they are buckled.”

Is your district or fleet receiving buses with seat belts for the first time this coming year? What safety issues and rules-of-use are you grappling with? Have you found successful answers?

Sound Familiar: Safety Regulation Means High School Transportation Costs (in Dubai)

This from the Nation's Press: Recent regulations of school buses in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, are sending the cost of school bus service "through the roof," the Gulf News reported. Schools are worried about the cost of the safety regulations and one has reportedly cut a number of buses to stay in budget. The principal told the paper:

"We are really worried about the fee increase because ours has always been an affordable school. But the overhaul and maintenance of school buses as per the RTA regulations are going to be too expensive for the school to afford."

Parents are worried, too. They said they don't like the idea of having to pick up the added cost of the safety regulation.

"I have three children going to school from next year and that means, I have to cough up around Dh10,000 [approx: $2,722.2 USD] alone as school transportation charges."

Is the Hands-Free-Only Law Reducing Hands-Free Use

Food for thought. Tom Vanderbilt at How We Drive brings up an interesting phenomenon. Since California has passed a ban on the use of hand-held phones while driving, use of both hands-held and hands-free phones has declined. A colleague hypothesizes two things are happening:

One, the publicity about the law has raised awareness in general about the risks of talking on a phone — hand-held or not — while driving (and this trend shall pass); or two, that people have not fully understood the law, and may be confusing one form of phone with the other (I admit to sometimes taking a moment to comprehend what the ungainly term ‘hand-free phone’ actually signifies). A third possible idea is that people may somehow feel police will be looking more carefully at all drivers on a phone, regardless of whether it’s legal or not. Or perhaps there’s some other unknown factor at work. Or perhaps the sample size is simply not large enough; perhaps more people than ever are driving and talking.

This should give us an opportunity to look at our own attitudes towards onboard devices, regulation and safe driving behavior.