As the school year begins this fall, many kids will take the bus as a means of getting to school. According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, students are much more likely to get safely to school when riding on a bus, as opposed to taking a car. School buses are so safe because they are the most highly regulated vehicle. Some of those requirements include seatbelts, brightly colored paint to ensure visibility, flashing lights, stop sign arms, and other mechanical features to prevent accidents.
However, if school buses are built to be so safe, why do we keep hearing about so many injury cases involving school busses?
Many cases involving school busses occur during the onboarding and exiting of the bus. During this time, there are many things going on: kids running around, parents corralling kids, parking lot traffic, and numerous other circumstances that can lead to accidents.
Preventing Injuries
To prevent injuries and to keep students safe, we have come up with a list of precautionary tips. These include:
- Arrive at least 5 minutes early to the bus stop.
Especially at the beginning of the year, mornings can be a stressful time between breakfast, getting ready for the day, and contending traffic. Unfortunately, these stressful factors can cause you and your students to be running late for the bus. If you can arrive at the bus 5 minutes early, however, everyone will be much calmer and able to keep the best safety practices in mind.
- Always make sure the driver sees you when crossing in the bus’s path.
Busses are usually tall and wide, so that they are visible to cars and trucks while on the road. However, these helpful features can make it difficult for the bus driver to see pedestrians. With this in mind, make sure that you can see the driver when crossing in front of the bus path. If you make eye contact with the driver, they will know that you are there and about to cross, so they will know not to accelerate forward.
- Don’t walk or play behind the bus.
Busses have many blind spots and often won’t be able to see small children who may be playing behind it. If you accidentally drop something behind the bus, it is best to alert the driver before attempting to retrieve what you dropped.
Seeking Legal Action
While these useful tips can help to prevent injuries, accidents involving buses still happen.
If you or a loved one has been injured due to a bus driver’s negligence, do not hesitate to reach out to the experienced Michigan personal injury attorneys at Buckfire & Buckfire, P.C.
Seeking compensation for a personal injury claim can be a difficult process, so call today to schedule your free case consultation.