The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) delivered its annual report to members of Congress. In the report, the NTSB called upon the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) to prohibit school bus drivers from talking on their cell phones while driving, except in emergencies. The passenger restraints were also addressed requesting that the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration design new standards to protect school bus passengers from being ejected during a collision or roll-over.
The report outlined numerous completed highway investigations including a school bus collision involving an 18-wheeler in Florida. A truck driver, operating a 75,360 pound Freightliner truck tractor pulling a box trailer caused a rear-end collision to a school bus. The bus was occupied by passengers ages 20 months to 15 years. The school bus was stopped to discharge two students. A Pontiac occupied by a driver and six passengers was stopped behind the school bus. The 18-wheeler collided with the rear of the Pontiac and the bus. All seven occupants of the Pontiac were killed. Three of the nine students on the school bus were ejected landing on the highway pavement and were seriously injured. It was determined that the probable cause of this accident was the failure of the truck driver to maintain alertness due to fatigue from obtaining inadequate rest. Contributing to the accident was the failure of the motor carrier to exercise proper over-sight of the driver’s hours of service.
