Call for Immediate Action on School Bus Safety

Call for Immediate Action on School Bus Safety

Rural Women New Zealand (RWNZ) says the Government must act without delay to improve safety for children travelling on school buses, particularly in rural areas.

The call comes following the tragic death of a Matamata schoolboy on Friday, shortly after he got off a school bus.

Rural Women New Zealand has been campaigning for better engineering, enforcement and education solutions to improve school bus safety since three Waikato children were killed in 2007 after getting off school buses. RWNZ has had strong support from the AA, School Trustees Association, ACC and Road Safety Co-ordinators.

“We want to see flashing ‘wig wag’ lights and 20km/h signs on buses to alert motorists to the legal speed limit when passing a stationary school bus,” says Margaret Chapman, RWNZ’s national president.

“We have found there is a dire lack of awareness of this Road Code rule. We need to implement simple ways of reminding drivers of the 20km/h limit every time they come across a school bus that’s stopped for children.”

The only requirement at present is for buses to display a ‘School’ sign, which RWNZ believes is totally inadequate.

In the last decade at least one child has been killed after getting off a school bus each year, and many more have been seriously injured.

“Action must be taken now to avert future deaths and more serious injuries,” says Ms Chapman.

In New South Wales all school buses must display speed limit signs and flashing lights that operate when a bus is slowing to let school children on or off, and when it is pulling away. This engineering solution could also be implemented in New Zealand where buses are used for a variety of purposes besides school transport.

“We also want to see much more enforcement of the 20km/h speed limit by Police and a nationwide education campaign for drivers,” says Ms Chapman.

In rural areas many cars speed past school buses at open road speeds. “That’s 80km/h above the speed limit.”

Tourists are also likely to be unaware of the 20km/h speed restriction, and Rural Women New Zealand wants this information to be included in all hire car information packs.

Transport Engineering Research New Zealand Limited is currently reviewing school bus safety and is due to report back to the Government in early July.

ENDS

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