Talk to kids about school bus safety

An average of 19 school-age occupants and pedestrians die in school transportation-related traffic crashes each year, according to the National Highway Traffic and Safety Administration.

It’s a sobering fact to be sure, but experts agree that unnecessary risks can be avoided by simply talking to children about the do’s and don’t’s of school bus safety.

Simple rules like avoiding horseplay, keeping heads and limbs inside windows and allowing the driver to concentrate are key. It’s also advisable to remind kids to keep seated and facing forward while the bus is in operation, to exit the bus in single file by the front doors only, and to always use handrails to avoid falls down steps.

Parents can limit potential accidents by ensuring kids arrive at least five minutes early to their stop, and that loose drawstrings or ties on jackets and sweatshirts are removed or shortened to avoid snags on bus handrails and seats.

"As children begin preparing to return to school, it’s important for parents and children to go over school bus safety tips together," says injury prevention coordinator Susan Laurence of Trauma Services at Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center. "This will help ensure a safe, enjoyable start to the school year for everyone."

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