Jul 11, 2018, 6:10 PM
(from K-12 Daily) The National Transportation Safety Board’s awaited review of two high-profile school bus crashes in Maryland and Tennessee in 2016 calls for improved district oversight of drivers.
The Maryland driver had been involved in 10 separate crashes over five years. He had worked for five different companies and required seizure medicine, which was a factor in some of the accidents. The Tennessee driver was using his cell phone and speeding at the time of the accident. He had accumulated numerous complaints about his driving performance in his five months on the job. Just five days before the crash, for instance, six students complained about the driver’s intentional swerving. The report concludes that the bus company did not take any action to relieve the driver of duty or take definitive steps to resolve the safety complaints, and that the local education department did not follow up to determine the outcome of the reports of unsafe driving.
NTSB recommends companies that provide busing services to schools establish and strictly adhere to policies and procedures for handling school bus driver disciplinary issues, and implement a systematic and detailed process to manage complaints or allegations concerning its drivers. It also recommends lap and shoulder belts, auto-braking technology and other changes to buses.
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