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

TRAFFIC SAFETY FACTS

2002–2011 Data

DOT HS 811 746 June 2013

School Transportation-Related Crashes

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 2002 there were 355,834 fatal motor vehicle traffic crashes. Of those, 1,221 

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

Since 2002, 1,351 people have died in school transportation-related crashes—an 

average of 135 fatalities per year. Occupants of school transportation vehicles 

accounted for 7 percent of the fatalities, and nonoccupants (pedestrians, bicyclists, 

etc.) accounted for 21 percent of the fatalities. Most (72%) of the people who lost 

their lives in these crashes were occupants of other vehicles involved (for more 

information see Table 5).

Since 2002, 123 school-age pedestrians (younger than 19) have died in school 

transportation-related crashes. Two-thirds (66%) were struck by school buses, 

6 percent by vehicles functioning as school buses, and 28 percent by other vehicles 

involved in the crashes. There were 49 (40%) school-age pedestrians killed in 

school transportation-related crashes between the ages of 5 and 7 (Figure 1).

Figure 1

Total School Bus Occupant and Pedestrian Fatalities in School 

Transportation-Related Crashes by Age Group, 2002–2011

An average of 17 schoolage children die in school 

transportation-related 

crashes each year—

5 occupants of school 

transportation vehicles 

and 12 pedestrians.

0 20 40 60 80 100 120

<5 0

11

7

49

18

39

24

24

46

113

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.

From 2002 to 2011, 

49 (40%) school-age 

pedestrians killed in 

school transportationrelated crashes 

were between 5 and 

7 years old.
2

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

On average, 9 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 7 a.m. and 8 a.m. 

and between 3 p.m. and 4 p.m. than any other times of day (as shown in Table 1).

Impacts to the front of 

the school transportation 

vehicle occurred in 48 

percent of fatal school 

transportation-related 

crashes.

Table 1

School-Age (Age<19) Fatalities in School Transportation-Related Crashes by Time of Day, 2002–2011

Time of Day

Occupants of School 

Transportation Vehicles

Occupants of 

Other Vehicles Pedestrians Pedalcyclists

Other* 

Nonoccupants Total

Midnight–6:59 a.m. 1 13 14 0 0 28

7–7:59 a.m. 7 51 32 1 0 91

8–8:59 a.m. 4 18 11 0 0 33

9–9:59 a.m. 0 3 0 1 0 4

10–10:59 a.m. 4 2 0 0 0 6

11–11:59 a.m. 0 0 1 0 0 1

Noon–12:59 p.m. 1 3 1 1 0 6

1–1:59 p.m. 2 1 5 0 0 8

2–2:59 p.m. 6 15 15 4 0 40

3–3:59 p.m. 16 47 30 2 1 96

4–4:59 p.m. 4 14 8 1 0 27

5–11:59 p.m. 4 13 6 2 0 25

Total 49 180 123 12 1 365

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

Between 2002 and 2011, 82 crashes occurred in which at least one occupant of a 

school transportation vehicle died. More than half of those crashes (57%) involved 

at least one other vehicle. Impacts to the front of the school transportation vehicle 

occurred in 48 percent and impacts to the right side of the school transportation 

vehicle occurred in 15 percent of fatal school transportation-related crashes 

(see Table 2). In the 35 single-vehicle crashes, 35 occupants—17 drivers and 18 

passengers—were killed. In the 47 multiple-vehicle crashes, 24 drivers and 36 

passengers died (see Table 3). In the 35 single-vehicle crashes, the first harmful 

events were as follows: striking a fixed object (21 crashes), the vehicle overturning 

(7 crashes), a person falling from the vehicle (5 crashes), and collision with a nonfixed object (1 crash).

Table 2

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

2002–2011

Initial Impact 

Point on School 

Transportation 

Vehicle

Type of Crash Total

Single-Vehicle Multiple-Vehicle

Crashes Fatalities Crashes Fatalities Crashes Fatalities

Front 14 14 25 30 39 44

Right Side 7 7 5 8 12 15

Left Side 1 1 8 11 9 12

Rear 1 1 6 7 7 8

Top 0 0 0 0 0 0

Undercarriage 1 1 1 1 2 2

Non-Collision 10 10 0 0 10 10

Other/Unknown 1 1 2 3 3 4

Total 35 35 47 60 82 95
3

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), 2002–2011

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

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

2010 8 8 6 6 1 1 1 1 9 9 7 7

2011 3 3 5 6 1 1 1 1 4 4 6 7

Total 28 28 35 43 7 7 12 17 35 35 47 60

Average 3 3 4 4 1 1 1 2 4 4 5 6

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

From 2002 to 2011, nearly three-fourths (72%) of the school-age pedestrians fatally 

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

bus, while 28 percent were struck by a vehicle of another body type. Of school age 

pedestrians fatally injured in school transportation-related crashes, more than one 

third (36%) were struck by a school bus or a vehicle functioning as a school bus 

that was going straight (Table 4).

Table 4

School-Age (Age <19) Pedestrians Killed in School TransportationRelated Crashes by Vehicle Maneuver, 2002–2011

Vehicle Maneuver

School Bus 

Body Type 

Vehicle 

Used as 

School Bus

Other Body 

Type Total

Going Straight 40 4 24 68

Accelerating in Traffic Lane 1 0 0 1

Starting in Traffic Lane 18 1 0 19

Stopped in Road 1 0 0 1

Passing or Overtaking Another 

Vehicle 0 0 6 6

Leaving/Entering a Parked 

Position 6 0 0 6

Maneuvering to Avoid 0 0 1 1

Turning Right 6 0 0 6

Turning Left 8 1 0 9

Negotiating a Curve 1 1 3 5

Changing/Merging Lanes 0 0 1 1

Total 81 7 35 123
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, 2002–2011

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

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

2010 6 10 16 21 5 26 4 84 130

2011 7 4 11 11 9 20 5 87 123

Total 41 54 95 192 43 236 44 976 1,351

Average 4 5 10 19 4 24 4 98 135

*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.

From 2002 to 2011, among the 95 occupants killed in school transportation vehicles, 

41 were drivers and 54 were passengers. Among the 236 pedestrians killed in 

school transportation-related crashes, 192 were struck by school vehicles and 43 

were struck by other vehicles. Since 2002, two 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.

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