In 1977, the last time the highway administration ordered a major school bus redesign, the agency recommended requiring seat belts and padded seats that are 28 inches high. Under pressure from school officials and the school bus industry, the agency dropped its seat belt recommendation and reduced the seat height requirement from 28 inches to 24 inches. The seat belt decision was understandable in the context of the times. In the mid-1970s, relatively few people actually used the seat belts in their cars and no states had laws requiring their use. The expectation was that seat belt use on buses would be equally low.
All states now require seat belt use, except on buses.
And an entire generation of parents have routinely buckled up their children, beginning with infant carriers on their way home from the hospital. To many of these parents, putting children who have never ridden in a car without being buckled into a car seat or restrained by a lap-shoulder belt onto a school bus without belts of any kind is illogical. A lot of school superintendents are coming under pressure to do this. Children are expected to be safely contained in their seats by limiting the space between rows and using high-backed padded seats. If jolted, children are expected to hit the padded seat in front of them and bounce back into their seat, much like eggs in a carton, proponents of the theory contend.