This week’s horrifying Mexico-bound tour bus accident killing two and injuring dozens south of San Antonio is still more tragic evidence that buses, in many ways, are unsafe. And something should be done about it.

This bus, at least, was part of a legitimate bus line: Americanos USA, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Dallas-based Greyhound Lines Inc. That was not the case when 17 persons traveling from Houston to a religious retreat died in a bus crash north of Dallas in 2008. That bus was not legally licensed to operate.

But even sanctioned tour buses or charter buses can have deadly bus accidents. And why are bus wrecks so dangerous, if not fatal? It starts with seat belts.

We don’t know yet if the tour bus headed to Mexico today had seat belts, but we do know that many buses do not — even school buses, in most states. In fact, only six states have passed laws requiring that school buses have seat belts, including New York, New Jersey, Florida and California. In the other states, kids are out of luck — and in a school bus accident, they may be out of time.

Connecticut is currently weighing a measure to require safety belts on school buses, following a January crash that killed a teen student there. Opponents say school buses are a statistically safe way to travel and point to the cost of installing seat belts. But what about the cost of a lost human life?

Lacking bus seat belts isn’t the only safety glitch aboard a school bus, tour bus or charter bus. Due to their bulk and height, buses also have a tendency to roll over in a traffic crash, and that can prove deadly. A bus is extremely heavy, and when it rolls over onto its roof, that roof can give way and crush victims inside.

Buses also have large amounts of glass via windows throughout the vehicle. This glass can shatter and injure occupants in a bus crash. And with their massive open space, buses have room for loose objects to fly across the interior and harm occupants.

These reasons and more show that bus safety reform is vital in America before more innocent people pay the ultimate price, like today’s doomed Texas bus passengers. Jim S. Adler & Associates strongly supports measures to increase bus safety and stands ready to assist bus accident victims with their legal needs.

Share on Facebook