Data on crashes involving school-transportation vehicles provides important insights for safety in school travel across motorized and nonmotorized modes.
RESULTS:
- From 2005-2014, 1332 people were killed in school-transportation-vehicle-related crashes, an average of 133 per year.
- 8% of fatalities were occupants of school transportation vehicles, and 21% were non-occupants (pedestrians and bicyclists). Most fatalities in school-transportation-vehicle -related crashes were occupants of other vehicles in the crash (71%).
- Of school-age pedestrians fatally injured in school-transportation-vehicle-related crashes, 64% were struck by school buses and 34% were struck by other vehicles (passenger cars, trucks, motorcycles, etc.). There were 111 pedestrian deaths from 2005-2014.
METHODS:
- This research brief includes data from the Fatality Analysis Report System (FARS) from 2005-2014 on school-transportation-vehicle-related crashes, defined as “a crash that 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.” It did not assess or compare school travel fatalities related to bicycle, pedestrian, or private vehicle crashes that did not involve school transportation vehicles.
National Center for Statistics and Analysis. (2016). School transportation-related crashes: 2005–2014 data. Traffic Safety Facts. Report No. DOT HS 812 272). Washington, DC: National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.
