Traffic S Tafety Facts 1997

U.S. Department of Transportation

School B Suses National Highway Traffic

Safety Administration

A school bus-related crash is a crash which involves, either directly or

DOT HS 808 774

“An average of 33

school-age children

die in school busrelated traffic crashes

each year — 9 school

bus occupants and

23 pedestrians.”

indirectly, a school bus-type vehicle, or a vehicle functioning as a school

bus, transporting children to or from school or school-related activities.

Since 1987 there have been about 420,000 fatal traffic crashes. Just over

0.3 percent (1,298) were classified as school bus-related.

Since 1987, 1,458 people have died in school bus-related crashes — an

average of 132 fatalities per year. Most of the people who lost their lives

in those crashes (63 percent) were occupants of other vehicles involved.

Nonoccupants (pedestrians, bicyclists, etc.) accounted for 27 percent of

the deaths, and school bus occupants accounted for 10 percent (drivers

2 percent, passengers 8 percent).

Since 1987, 257 school-age pedestrians (less than 19 years old) have died

in school bus-related crashes. Nearly two-thirds (64 percent) were killed

by school buses, 5 percent by vehicles functioning as school buses, and

32 percent by other vehicles involved in the crashes. Half of all schoolage pedestrians killed in school bus-related crashes were between the

ages of 5 and 7.

Number of Fatalities

1

2

3

4

5

6

7

8

9

10

11

12

13

14

15

16

17

18

19+

0 10 20 30 40 50 60 70 80 90 100 110

Age

(Years)

Occupants

Pedestrians

Figure 1. Occupant and Pedestrian Fatalities in School Bus-Related

Crashes, by Age, 1987-1997

Note: Occupant fatalities shown are for occupants of school buses or vehicles used as

school buses.

National Center for Statistics & Analysis Research & Development 400 Seventh Street, S.W. Washington, D.C. 20590
2 Traffic Safety Facts 1997 — School Buses

On average, 16 school-age pedestrians are killed by school buses (or

“From 1987 to 1997,

half of all schoolage pedestrians

killed in school busrelated crashes were

5 to 7 years old.”

vehicles used as school buses) each year, and 7 are killed by other

vehicles involved in school bus-related crashes.

More school-age pedestrians are killed in the afternoon than in the

morning, with 43 percent of the fatalities occurring in crashes between

3:00 and 4:00 PM.

Table 1. Fatalities in School Bus-Related Crashes by Time of Day,

1987-1997

Time of Day

Occupant

Fatalities*

Pedestrians

(School Age)

Total

Fatalities

12:00-6:59 AM 5 6 11

7:00-7:59 AM 48 29 77

8:00-8:59 AM 17 19 36

9:00-9:59 AM 5 6 11

10:00-10:59 AM 4 0 4

11:00-11:59 AM 2 6 8

12:00-12:59 PM 5 8 13

1:00-1:59 PM 6 4 10

2:00-2:59 PM 17 36 53

3:00-3:59 PM 25 110 135

4:00-4:59 PM 9 29 38

5:00-11:59 PM 7 4 11

Total 150 257 407

* Does not include occupants of other vehicles in school bus-related crashes.

Between 1987 and 1997, 100 crashes occurred in which at least one

occupant of a school bus or a vehicle functioning as a school bus died.

Half of those crashes (52 percent) involved another vehicle. In the 48

single-vehicle crashes, 60 occupants — 13 drivers and 47 passengers —

were killed. In the 52 multiple-vehicle crashes, 18 drivers and

72 passengers died. In the 48 single-vehicle crashes, the first harmful

events were as follows: striking a fixed object (28 crashes), a person

falling from the vehicle (10 crashes), the vehicle overturning (6 crashes),

the vehicle colliding with a train (2 crashes), and collision with object

not fixed (1 crash).

In 42 percent of all crashes involving fatalities to occupants of a school

bus or vehicle used as a school bus, the principal point of impact was the

front of the vehicle.

Since 1987, 7 drivers and 47 passengers have died in school buses

providing transportation for purposes other than school or school-related

activities (churches, civic organizations, etc.). In one such multi-vehicle

crash, 27 occupants, including the driver, died.

National Center for Statistics & Analysis Research & Development 400 Seventh Street, S.W. Washington, D.C. 20590
Traffic S Tafety Facts 1997 — School Buses 3

“Impacts to the front

of the school bus

occur in 42 percent

of fatal school busrelated crashes.”

Table 2. Occupant Fatalities in School Bus-Related Crashes by

Principal Impact Point on School Bus Vehicle, 1987-1997

Principal

Impact Point

on Bus

Type of Crash

Single-Vehicle Multiple-Vehicle Total

Crashes Fatalities Crashes Fatalities Crashes Fatalities

Front 16 19 26 59 42 78

Right Side 6 6 10 15 16 21

Left Side 1 1 10 10 11 11

Rear 3 9 5 5 8 14

Top 2 3 0 0 2 3

Undercarriage 1 1 1 1 2 2

Noncollision 18 20 0 0 18 20

Unknown 1 1 0 0 1 1

Total 48 60 52 90 100 150

Table 3. School-Age Pedestrians Killed in School Bus-Related

Crashes by Vehicle Maneuver, 1987-1997

Vehicle Maneuver

Striking Vehicle

School Bus

Vehicle

Used as

School Bus

Other

Vehicle Total

Going Straight 61 9 56 126

Slowing or Stopping in Traffic Lane 6 0 3 9

Starting in Traffic Lane 66 1 1 68

Passing or Overtaking Another Vehicle 0 0 11 11

Leaving a Parked Position 7 1 0 8

Maneuvering to Avoid an Animal,

Pedestrian, Object, Other Vehicle, etc. 0 0 5 5

Turning Right 11 0 0 11

Turning Left 6 0 0 6

Backing Up (Other Than for Parking) 4 0 0 4

Negotiating a Curve 1 0 3 4

Entering Parked Position 2 0 0 2

Changing Lanes 0 0 1 1

Other/Unknown 0 1 1 2

Total School-Age Pedestrians Killed 164 12 81 257

National Center for Statistics & Analysis Research & Development 400 Seventh Street, S.W. Washington, D.C. 20590
4 Traffic Safety Facts 1997 — School Buses

Table 4. School Bus-Related Crashes Involving Occupant Fatalities, 1987-1997

Year

School Bus Body-Type Vehicle Used as School Bus Total

Single-Vehicle Multiple-Vehicle Single-Vehicle Multiple-Vehicle Single-Vehicle Multiple-Vehicle

Crashes Fatalities Crashes Fatalities Crashes Fatalities Crashes Fatalities Crashes Fatalities Crashes Fatalities

1987 0 0 6 11 3 3 3 3 3 3 9 14

1988 2 2 4 5 11 00 33 4 5

1989 7 8 * 5 25 3 3 1 1 10 11 6 26

1990 5 7 4 4 00 00 57 4 4

1991 0 0 6 10 46 11 46 7 11

1992 3 3 4 4 2 3 0 0 5 6 4 4

1993 5 5 2 5 22 11 77 3 6

1994 0 0 0 0 00 34 00 3 4

1995 2 8 3 4 1 1 0 0 3 9 3 4

1996 5 5 3 3 22 00 77 3 3

1997 0 0 4 7 11 22 11 6 9

Total 29 38 41 78 19 22 11 12 48 60 52 90

* Includes one crash with 21 occupant fatalities.

Note: Does not include occupants of other vehicles in school bus-related crashes.

Table 5. Fatalities in School Bus-Related Crashes, 1987-1997

Year

Occupants of School Bus* Pedestrians

Other

Nonoccupants

Occupants

of Other

Driver Passenger Total Vehicle Total

Struck by

School Bus*

Struck by

Other Vehicle Total

1987 8 9 17 32 11 43 5 113 178

1988 268 19 17 36 6 80 130

1989 4 33 37 25 7 32 1 72 142

1990 4 7 11 32 7 39 1 64 115

1991 2 15 17 21 5 26 5 86 134

1992 1 9 10 21 8 29 2 83 124

1993 1 12 13 32 8 40 2 86 141

1994 224 28 9 37 2 64 107

1995 0 13 13 24 10 34 4 72 123

1996 2 8 10 16 7 23 2 101 136

1997 5 5 10 16 2 18 5 95 128

Total 31 119 150 266 91 357 35 916 1,458

Average 3 11 14 24 8 32 3 83 132

* Includes school bus body type and vehicle used as school bus.

For more information:

Information on school bus traffic fatalities is available from the National Center for Statistics and Analysis,

NRD-31, 400 Seventh Street, S.W., Washington, D.C. 20590. Telephone inquiries should be addressed to

Ms. Louann Hall at 1-800-934-8517. FAX messages should be sent to (202) 366-7078. General information on

highway traffic safety can be accessed by Internet users at http://www.nhtsa.dot.gov/people/ncsa. To report a

safety-related problem or to inquire about motor vehicle safety information, contact the Auto Safety Hotline at

1-800-424-9393.

National Center for Statistics & Analysis Research & Development 400 Seventh Street, S.W. Washington, D.C. 20590