Why aren't school buses required by Wisconsin or the federal government to have seat belts?

Students will return to school soon, which means many will be filing back onto big yellow buses.

Parents rely on the buses to transport their children safely to and from school. But without seatbelts for young riders, is it really safe?

The answer is yes.

According to the Wisconsin Department of Transportation, neither Wisconsin nor the federal government requires school buses to have seat belts. In fact, some lap-only seatbelts may even be harmful to small children in a crash.

School buses are designed to take a large amount of impact, not crush in a rollover incident; they are also designed to cushion children in the event of a crash or quick stop. Seat belts mainly serve to prevent ejection from a vehicle, which bus riders aren't at high risk of unless they're standing in the aisle.

However, if a bus has seat belts, the DOT says to use them. For example, smaller school buses used to transport young children or children with disabilities often have seat belts. These can be helpful in keeping children seated.

Parents should know their children's safety is a priority on school buses, said Larry Kirkley, president of Dousman Transport Co.

Considering the safety features and the training bus drivers go through, Kirkley said parents can rest assured that school buses are one of the safest vehicles on the road.

DOT reports that in school bus crashes over the last couple decades, less than 10% of bus occupants were injured, and 90% were completely uninjured. The most frequently injured person on a school bus is the driver, since the seating position does not offer the same protections that passenger seats have.

The majority of school bus crashes are cited as being the other driver's fault, according to DOT.

Contact Mia Thurow at [email protected].

This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Why aren't school buses required to have seat belts?