School buses to come with 3-point seatbelts for 1st time ever this fall
TAMPA, Fla. (WFLA) — While school buses aren’t known for seatbelts, one company is looking to change that for this upcoming fall semester.
On June 13, school bus manufacturer Blue Bird, which has been making buses for almost 100 years, announced a series of new safety upgrades that would be implemented for the fall of 2024.
One of these upgrades will be the implementation of three-point seatbelts for students. According to Blue Bird, this will be a first in the history of student transportation.
“For nearly a century, our children’s safety has been our business. We proudly carry millions of school children every year, the most precious cargo in the world,” said Britton Smith, president of Blue Bird Corporation. “Today we raise the bar even higher for student transportation by announcing the most comprehensive safety upgrades to our school buses in our history.”
Drivers will also have an additional safeguard in the form of the 4Front steering wheel air bag. In addition to the seating upgrades, Blue Bird’s buses will use LED lights on the inside and outside of the bus, front-and-rear cameras, lighted stop arms and signs, and strobe lights to improve visibility.
Collision mitigation systems will also be added to these new models as well.
Blue Bird said it worked with IMMI to implement these safety upgrades.
“We are thrilled to partner with iconic school bus manufacturer Blue Bird as their new seating and advanced safety supplier,” said Larry Gray, CEO of IMMI. “School buses carry millions of school children every day and literally our nation’s future. We applaud Blue Bird for its bold leadership to make lap-shoulder belts standard safety equipment, while also leading the way to better protect drivers.”
Blue Bird, which is based in based in Georgia, is the only American-owned bus manufacturer in the U.S.
Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WFLA.
