Opponents note the domino effect if some students onboard a bus use lap belts and others don't. Clearly, the many variables and uniqueness of each crash scenario preclude a simple answer.
Seat belts have no effect in the most common school bus crash scenarios.
Two-thirds of student fatalities occur as youngsters walk to or from the school bus stop while they are pedestrians, or because they are run over by their own school bus. Regarding the cost to install three-point safety belts, no authoritative source has calculated that cost. Seat belts may actually prevent rapid egress from a bus in the case of a bus fire or sinking in a river, lake or other large body of water. Installing seat belts in a school bus does not mean that students will use them. It is not possible for the bus driver to police the proper fastening and adjustment of seat belts.