Image: M. Rothenburger

By Mel Rothenburger

Armchair Mayor

ROTHENBURGER: Fatal crash raises the need for seatbelts in school buses again

Jan 4, 2023 | 4:10 AM

SEATBELTS IN BUSES are an issue again in the wake of the tragic Christmas Eve bus crash on the Okanagan Connector.

Although the investigation into the accident will take months, police now say most passengers on the bus weren’t wearing their seatbelts. They say passengers have a false sense of security in the big buses.

Seatbelts were mandated for new highway passenger buses more than two years ago, so the issue isn’t a lack of belts.

The accident also raises once again the question of whether seatbelts should be required for school buses. The reluctance to legislate them is based on claims that school buses are built to such a safe standard that they aren’t necessary.

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Transport Canada points out that school buses have high roof crush standards, window retention and padded high-back seats.

Besides, there are concerns about kids wearing their seatbelts properly, and the difficulties of ensuring they wear them at all.

Another big impediment is, no doubt, cost — installing belts would add thousands to the price of each bus, and there are currently about 52,000 school buses in the country.

Amazingly, the Canada Safety Council insists seatbelts wouldn’t improve safety in school buses.

Nevertheless, calls for seatbelts in school buses haven’t been ignored completely. A couple of years ago, with support from the federal and provincial governments, two B.C. school districts began pilot projects.

The Nanaimo-Ladysmith district put seatbelts in two buses; students who fail to wear them were subject to discipline including being booted from the bus, permanently. The Fraser-Cascade district reported that kids were accepting the seatbelts.

So, it can be done. When the experts talk about how safe school buses are, they fail to account for rollovers. School buses, like commercial buses, may be built safely, but when a bus tips or rolls, the injuries caused to those who are thrown around inside are devastating.

Seatbelts in school buses should be a federal law.

I’m Mel Rothenburger, the Armchair Mayor.

Mel Rothenburger is a former mayor of Kamloops, former TNRD director and a retired newspaper editor. He is a regular contributor to CFJC Today, publishes the ArmchairMayor.ca opinion website, and is a recipient of the Jack Webster Foundation Lifetime Achievement Award. He can be reached at mrothenburger@armchairmayor.ca.

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Editor’s Note: This opinion piece reflects the views of its author, and does not necessarily represent the views of CFJC Today or Pattison Media.