NHTSA’s National Center for Statistics and Analysis 1200 New Jersey Avenue SE., Washington, DC 20590

TRAFFIC SAFETY FACTS

2009 Data

School Transportation-Related Crashes

DOT HS 811 396

(Revised March 2011)

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

indirectly, a school bus body vehicle, or a non-school bus functioning as a school 

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

Since 2000 there were 371,104 fatal motor vehicle traffic crashes. Of those, 1,245 

(0.34%) were classified as school transportation-related.

Since 2000, 1,386 people have died in school transportation-related crashes— an 

average of 139 fatalities per year. Occupants of school transportation vehicles 

accounted for 8 percent of the fatalities, and nonoccupants (pedestrians, bicyclists, 

etc.) accounted for 20 percent of the fatalities. Most of the people who lost their 

lives in these crashes (72%) were occupants of other vehicles involved.

Since 2000, 130 school-age pedestrians (younger than 19) have died in school 

transportation-related crashes. Over two-thirds (67%) were struck by school buses, 

6 percent by vehicles functioning as school buses, and 27 percent by other vehicles 

involved in the crashes. There were 56 (43%) school-age pedestrians killed in 

school transportation-related crashes between the ages of 5 and 7.

Figure 1

Total School Bus Occupant and Pedestrian Fatalities in School 

Transportation-Related Crashes by Age Group, 2000–2009

0 20 40 60 80 100 120

<5 1

17

5

56

27

35

24

22

50

108

5-7

Occupants Pedestrians

8-13

14-18

19+

Age Group (Years)

Number of Fatalities

Note: Occupant fatalities shown are for occupants of school buses and non-school buses used as school buses.

An average of 19 schoolage occupants of school 

transportation vehicles 

(6) and pedestrians 

(13) die in school 

transportation-related 

traffic crashes each year.
2

NHTSA’s National Center for Statistics and Analysis 1200 New Jersey Avenue SE., Washington, DC 20590

On average, 10 school-age pedestrians are killed by school transportation vehicles 

(school buses and non-school bus vehicles used as school buses) each year, and 

4 are killed by other vehicles involved in school bus-related crashes. 

More school-age pedestrians have been killed between the hours of 3 p.m. and 

4 p.m. than any other time of day.

Table 1

School-Age (Age <19) Fatalities in School Transportation-Related Crashes by Time of Day, 2000–2009

Time of Day

Occupants of School 

Transportation Vehicles

Occupants of 

Other Vehicles Pedestrians Pedalcyclists

Other* 

Nonoccupants Total

Midnight–6:59 a.m. 4 13 11 0 0 28

7:00–7:59 a.m. 9 54 30 2 0 95

8:00–8:59 a.m. 4 20 12 1 0 37

9:00–9:59 a.m. 0 4 0 1 0 5

10:00–10:59 a.m. 3 4 0 0 0 7

11:00–11:59 a.m. 0 0 3 0 0 3

Noon–12:59 p.m. 1 3 1 1 0 6

1:00–1:59 p.m. 0 3 6 0 0 9

2:00–2:59 p.m. 11 13 17 4 0 45

3:00–3:59 p.m. 18 52 35 2 1 108

4:00–4:59 p.m. 3 15 10 1 0 29

5:00–11:59 p.m. 4 12 5 1 0 22

Total 57 193 130 13 1 394

*Includes persons on personal conveyances such as skateboards, scooters, wheelchairs, etc.

From 2000 to 2009, 

56 (43%) school-age 

pedestrians killed in 

school transportationrelated crashes 

were between 5 and 

7 years old.

Between 2000 and 2009, 85 crashes occurred in which at least one occupant of a 

school transportation vehicle died. More than half of those crashes (56%) involved 

at least one other vehicle. In the 37 single-vehicle crashes, 43 occupants—16 drivers 

and 27 passengers—were killed. In the 48 multiple-vehicle crashes, 26 drivers 

and 38 passengers died. In the 37 single-vehicle crashes, the first harmful events 

were as follows: striking a fixed object (22 crashes), a person falling from the 

vehicle (5 crashes), the vehicle overturning (5 crashes), the vehicle colliding with 

a train (1 crash), other non-collision (1 crash), and collision with a non-fixed object 

(1 crash).

Table 2

Total School Bus Occupant Fatalities (All Ages) in School TransportationRelated Crashes by Initial Impact Point on School Transportation Vehicle, 

2000–2009

Principal Impact 

Point on School 

Transportation 

Vehicle

Type of Crash Total

Single-Vehicle Multiple-Vehicle

Crashes Fatalities Crashes Fatalities Crashes Fatalities

Front 16 20 27 34 43 54

Right Side 7 9 6 8 13 17

Left Side 2 2 9 12 11 14

Rear 2 2 4 5 6 7

Top 0 0 1 4 1 4

Undercarriage 0 0 0 0 0 0

Non-Collision 9 9 0 0 9 9

Other/Unknown 1 1 1 1 2 2

Total 37 43 48 64 85 107
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NHTSA’s National Center for Statistics and Analysis 1200 New Jersey Avenue SE., Washington, DC 20590

Table 3

School Transportation-Related Crashes Involving Occupant Fatalities (All Ages), 2000–2009

Year

School Bus Body Type Vehicle Used as School Bus Total

Single-Vehicle 

Crash 

Multiple-Vehicle 

Crash

Single-Vehicle 

Crash 

Multiple-Vehicle 

Crash

Single-Vehicle 

Crash 

Multiple-Vehicle 

Crash

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

2000 7 9 6 7 2 2 2 3 9 11 8 10

2001 5 9 6 8 1 1 0 0 6 10 6 8

2002 1 1 1 1 1 1 0 0 2 2 1 1

2003 5 5 2 2 3 3 1 1 8 8 3 3

2004 2 2 5 5 0 0 0 0 2 2 5 5

2005 3 3 4 5 0 0 2 2 3 3 6 7

2006 0 0 3 6 0 0 2 2 0 0 5 8

2007 2 2 1 1 0 0 1 2 2 2 2 3

2008 3 3 6 9 1 1 3 6 4 4 9 15

2009 1 1 2 2 0 0 1 2 1 1 3 4

Total 29 35 36 46 8 8 12 18 37 43 48 64

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

From 2000 to 2009, nearly three-fourths (73%) of the school-age pedestrians fatally 

injured in crashes were struck by a school bus or a vehicle functioning as a school 

bus, while 27 percent were struck by a vehicle of another body type. One-third 

(34%) of school-age pedestrians fatally injured in school transportation-related 

crashes were struck by a school bus or a vehicle functioning as a school bus that 

was going straight.

Table 4

School-Age (Age <19) Pedestrians Killed in School TransportationRelated Crashes by Vehicle Maneuver, 2000–2009

Vehicle Maneuver

School Bus 

Body Type 

Vehicle 

Used as 

School Bus

Other Body 

Type Total

Going Straight 41 3 21 65

Slowing or Stopping in 

Traffic Lane 1 0 0 1

Starting in Traffic Lane 21 2 0 23

Passing or Overtaking Another 

Vehicle 0 0 8 8

Leaving a Parked Position 5 0 0 5

Maneuvering to Avoid 

an Animal, Pedestrian, 

Object, Other Vehicle, etc.

0 0 2 2

Turning Right 6 0 0 6

Turning Left 12 1 0 13

Backing Up (Other Than 

 for Parking) 0 1 0 1

Negotiating a Curve 0 1 3 4

Entering Parked Position 1 0 0 1

Changing Lanes 0 0 1 1

Total 87 8 35 130

Impacts to the front of 

the school transportation 

vehicle occurred in 51 

percent of fatal school 

transportation-related 

crashes.
4

NHTSA’s National Center for Statistics and Analysis 1200 New Jersey Avenue SE., Washington, DC 20590

Table 5

Fatalities (All Ages) in School-transportation-related Crashes, 2000–2009

Year

Occupants of School 

Transportation Vehicles* Pedestrians

Other NonoccupantsOccupants of 

Driver Passenger Total Other Vehicles Total

Struck by 

School Vehicle

Struck by 

Other Vehicle Total

2000 8 13 21 19 7 26 1 99 147

2001 6 12 18 18 4 22 6 95 141

2002 1 2 3 16 4 20 6 100 129

2003 6 5 11 22 5 27 2 100 140

2004 3 4 7 27 3 30 3 93 133

2005 5 5 10 27 3 30 7 87 134

2006 3 5 8 19 3 22 2 118 150

2007 4 1 5 16 2 19** 6 112 142

2008 4 15 19 20 1 21 8 104 152

2009 2 3 5 13 8 21 1 91 118

Total 42 65 107 197 40 238 42 999 1,386

*Includes school bus body type and non-school bus used as school bus.

**Includes 1 pedestrian fatality in which the striking vehicle was not identified.

Since 2000, three drivers and one passenger have died in school bus body vehicles 

providing transportation for purposes other than school or school-related activities 

(churches, civic organizations, etc.).

For more information:

Information on traffic fatalities is available from the National Center for 

Statistics and Analysis (NCSA), NVS-424, 1200 New Jersey Avenue SE., 

Washington, DC 20590. NCSA can be contacted at 800-934-8517 or via 

the following e-mail address: ncsaweb@dot.gov. General information on 

highway traffic safety can be accessed by Internet users at www.nhtsa.gov/

NCSA. To report a safety-related problem or to inquire about motor vehicle 

safety information, contact the Vehicle Safety Hotline at 888-327-4236.

Other fact sheets available from the National Center for Statistics and 

Analysis are Alcohol-Impaired Driving, Bicyclists and Other Cyclists, Children, 

Large Trucks, Motorcycles, Occupant Protection, Older Population, Overview, 

Passenger Vehicles, Pedestrians, Race and Ethnicity, Rural/Urban Comparisons, 

Speeding, State Alcohol Estimates, State Traffic Data, and Young Drivers. Detailed 

data on motor vehicle traffic crashes are published annually in Traffic Safety 

Facts: A Compilation of Motor Vehicle Crash Data from the Fatality Analysis 

Reporting System and the General Estimates System. The fact sheets and 

annual Traffic Safety Facts report can be accessed online at www-nrd.nhtsa.

dot.gov/CATS/index.aspx.