CINCINNATI, OH (FOX19) -
Every year in the Tri-State there are hundreds of school bus
crashes and dozens of students hurt. So who's usually to blame --- the school
bus driver or the other driver?
FOX19 obtained the latest statistics available from the Ohio
State Highway Patrol for 2009-2011. They show that bus drivers were at fault in
44.4% of the crashes, while the other driver was at fault in 44.9% of them.
The one thing those statistics show is that even with school
bus drivers getting up to 45 hours of training, people will make mistakes. That
leads to a long-debated question, should kids in buses wear seatbelts?
It depends who you talk to, according to a safety manager at
First Student, a transportation company that provides dozens of school buses in
Cincinnati.
"The high back seats that are required by the state of Ohio
is for compartmentalization, like an egg crate," said Tom Gutman. "And they
feel it's still the safest way to go."
He points out, though, that special needs students do wear
seatbelts when they ride a First Student bus.
Gutman and senior location manager Joe Eversole say the
biggest problem their drivers face is passenger car drivers who are too
impatient.
"I think the thing that motorists have to remember is that
there is a lot of time (required) especially with our special needs buses when
they stop," said Eversole.
Recently, a woman in Cleveland lost her license for a month
and had
to wear a sign that said "Only an idiot would drive around a school bus,"
after the bus driver recorded
video of her driving her car on the sidewalk to get around him. He told
authorities that it happened day after day.
Meanwhile, a bus
industry website points out that in Ohio school bus crashes declined about
25% between 2000 and 2010. So, the industry argues, it is getting safer.
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