StudentsStudents
Journey to and from school
If you use school transport then this page may be useful to you or your friends. You can find some tips to keep you safe and some advice on what you can do if you have a problem on the journey to and from school.
If you are provided with a seat belt on your school coach or minibus you should wear it. Not to, not only puts you at risk but it also put other people travelling with you at risk, including your friends because you can be thrown into them during a crash. If this was to happen, you might end up seriously injured. How would you feel if you injured someone else? If you are involved in a road traffic collision, your safety belt will act as your own personal brake. You wouldn't get on the coach if the brakes were not working - so why would you not 'wear' your own personal brake?
When there is a collision, there are in fact, three collisions. The first, well that is the vehicle. It is going to come to a sudden stop. The second collision - thats you! You are going to come to a sudden stop. You will hit something inside the vehicle. At that time, you will WISH that it was your safety belt. The third collision are your internal organs because they stop slightly after your body stops. They will twist, tear and rupture around fixed points of the body and that is how people die at the scheme of a crash. They may not have visible injuries but because they did not belt up, they may have internal injuries that cause internal bleeding.
For more information about safety belts or to get help to run a seat belt campaign in your school contact us. Remember, most road traffic collisions happen on short familiar routes such as nipping to the supermarket with a parent, visiting a friend or travelling on the school run. Most collisions happen at low speeds of around 30mph or less and within five minutes of leaving home or within five miles into the journey.
Whoever drives you, whether it is a parent or a school bus driver, they need your support to keep you safe. It's not ok to distract the driver by being too noisy, playing with on-board safety equipment and tampering with emergency exits, hanging out of the windows or standing by the driver’s cab which can block his view in his wing mirrors. Remember the driver is there to drive you safely. If you distract him you are preventing him from keeping you safe...besides, do you really want to be responsible for causing a crash resulting perhaps in the death of someone? It could just be your friend that you normally sit next to in school. You would not want to have to live with that.
Always wait until the vehicle stops before you try to get on or off and be careful not to catch your clothing or baggage in the doors when they close. If you follow these simple tips you will be a lot safer. Many passengers sustain serious permanent or fatal injuries each year when they try to cross in front of a school bus or coach. This is because drivers overtaking a bus or coach cannot see you - so think about this.
If you think that the rules or safety tips are not being kept by others and this concerns you and you worry that others may distract the driver and cause a crash, then you can do something about this without being identified. Simply tell your head teacher or another adult you trust. You can ask them to contact BUSK for free advice and information on how the matter can be dealt with. Remember, little changes unless someone is brave enough to take the first step. Will that be you?
