Forgive me ladies for not knowing this, but do school buses have seat belt? I wasn't brought up in the States, so I never gave it a second thought. The day care my son will go to when he turns 3 has a bus , but I am told by moms here (on island) that the bus that drives the 3 year olds around does not have seat belts. Is that normal?
I am in shock thinking about it, since my son at 20 months still rear faces in the car with us and I will not put him on the actual seat until he exceeds all weight and height limits.
Anyone has any info?
Thanks in advance!
I'm in MA and I know buses aren't equipped with them.
Grade school and above they are not required. However for children still requiring car seats is IS the lasw and required. My child wouldn't be going on that bus. period.
My son is in public preschool here in MA and the bus is required to have a car seat for him. He's in a 5 point harness (forward facing) just like in our car.
The buses do not have belts, maybe the smaller ones do..call your Pre-School. But if you are concerned do your best to drive him if you can..early drop off if available. it is amazing all of the laws we have for our kids to be safe in our cars, vans etc but it would cost the school systems to much to install seat belts and the whole getitng seach child out of one if there is an accident (what if the belt had to be cut off? does the driver carry a knife?)a lot of Kindergartners ar enot 40 lbs and are not in seat belts on the bus (my son is 41 lbs at almost 7) so that rule is out the window. You can only do what you consider safe, so if driving your child to school is best you need to do it or car pool with other parents if you cannot. But do call the Daycare Pre-School and ask about their buses. My son loves to take the bus to school.
Hi K.,
I'm a Child Passenger Safety Technician. *MOST* buses are not required to have seatbelts, although many states have laws requiring school buses transporting preschoolers to have an alternative method of restraint (Depending on the size of the bus).
Older bigger kids are very safe without seatbelts due to what is called 'compartmentalization' (basically, the frame of the bus absorbs the worst of the impact and the high and narrow spaces between the seats sort of 'contain' the bodies in a crash). Compartmentalization doesn't work for kids under roughly 4 feet and 50 pounds, though.
I personally would not put a three year old on a school bus that did not have either lap belts to install harnessed seats or a alternative harness system built into the bus benches for small riders.
http://www.safeguardseat.com/industries/school-transporta... This link is an example of products that can be used on school buses for the smallest passengers, although there are a large variety that are FMVSS approved, in varying styles and costs.
By the way, GOOD FOR YOU that you are keeping your child rear facing. You should be commended for doing the number one thing to prevent your child from dying or suffering debilitating injuries in his lifetime (I have a 2 and almost four year old who are also rear facing in their convertibles).
Please let me know if I can provide you with any more information either about preschooler transport or extended rear facing!
HI K.,
You have a very pretty name. Big buses do not have seat belts. Little buses have them. Since he is only 3, I would think he is on a little bus. Maybe you should call and check it out. I would be uncomfortable with my 3 year old not in a seat belt.
D.
It's my understanding that in Massachusetts seatbelts are required in /public/ school buses, but that the use of them is discretionary. Meaning, basically, that the bus driver can't confirm that everyone is wearing their belt at all time, otherwise she/he would be constantly running up and down the aisle and they'd never get to school.
So, basically, I've been drumming "You must wear a seatbelt on the bus" into my kids' heads for months.
The newer school buses have seatbelts. I took my youngest (3 year old) son on a field trip and they went on a newer big school bus that had seat belts. Although my 2nd grader takes the bus to school and they don't have them.
Very strange...I think they should all have them!
Big buses do not have belts, but some of the smaller buses do. I would definitely check into it. It still blows me away that there's laws requiring booster seat usage up to like age 8, yet school buses are not required to have seat belts. It's nuts. I'm with you. There's no way I'd put a kid that young on a vehicle without belts and a car seat.
Standard school buses do not have belts. Part of the issue is expense, and also some say that a single driver could not get kids out of a bus in an emergency if they were belted.
A child younger than kindergarten would probably go in a van of some sort, either a minivan or something like a 12 passenger van. Those would have belts. My neighbor is 4 and goes to an early intervention preschool program - his van picks him up and has a car seat in it. I'm not sure if the parents provided that car seat, but it's there. The dad puts the child in the seat and buckles him in, and then either the driver or a school aide unbuckles him and escorts him into the building. We're in central Massachusetts.
Hope this helps.
never heard of a 3 year going to KG usually its 5 years age limit ...
The large school buses do not have belts, but a child has to be 40 pounds before they are allowed to ride them (at least according to the company that our school rents buses from for field trips). If it is a bus transporting smaller children to and from a daycare, it is more likely a 15 passenger van which will have belts and car seats if needed.
Hi K.,
My sons started going to school at the age of 4 for preschool. I would get on the bus and buckle them in. Only some seats and some buses have seatbelts at our school. If a bus doesn't have seatbelts, my children do not ride that bus. I drive them or they don't go. My sons' teachers requeswt buses with seatbelts when they go on fieldtrips because I've told them that they will not go otherwise.
To me, the reason for not using seatbelts being that the children won't be able to get off the bus in case of an emergency is ridiculous. If they have a seatbelt on, they'll have more chance of surviving a crash with less harm, especially if it is a roll-over. If they are taught, they will know how to unbuckle, though I think 3 years may be a bit young for that ability, maybe not. If they are injured, they may not be able to get off.
Here is a website:
http://www.ncsbs.org/testimonies/fatalities_and_injuries.htm
: ) Maureen
