Bus Accident Statistics

Across the nation on a daily basis, buses in the thousands transport children to their schools, the workforce to their places of work, travelers on the road across state lines, and individuals to different points locally.

City buses, charter buses, school buses, and commuter buses can life convenient for many individuals, when offering conveyance affordable for many individuals, and a transportation solution that is ecologically sound.

Among the safest travel solutions, they are useful for traveling locally and at long distances with less than 0.2 deaths every billion miles.

Annually, however, there are plenty of bus accidents that result in property damage, sustained injuries, and fatalities.

Buses and trucks comprise nearly 12 percent of fatalities on the roadways across the states.

With a rough total of 33,000 fatal collisions, this covers all kinds of vehicles, with about 260 bus-related.

Of the nearly 6,300,000 nonfatal annual vehicle collisions, only about 4 percent involved roughly one large truck or bus.

Here’s an overall picture of statistics involving bus crashes:

• 260 fatal bus collisions
• 50 fatalities with bus occupants
• Annually, nearly 300 total fatalities in bus collisions
• Over 14,000 bus collisions which resulted in sustained injury
• Nearly 55,000 bus collisions which resulted in property damage
• Nationwide, there were nearly 900,000 bus registered, traveling over 16 million annual miles.

Fatal bus crash breakdown is the following:

Over 30 deaths involving intercity buses; nearly 200 deaths in school and transit buses, and nearly 40 deaths in other types of buses.

Tour and city buses are deemed safe for the most part, but it can be a challenge to compute actual numbers. Many collisions involving city and tour buses aren’t reported.

This is due to bus companies going through efforts to keep low statistics of bus collisions for a number of reasons.

Bus seats on city buses are made similar to seats on school buses, with high armrests and backs to keep riders restricted, or remain seated should there be a bus collision.

An elderly or inexperienced bus driver is cause for significant increase in collision risks.

Distracted operating of a vehicle has also become problematic as smartphones and mobile devices become more popular.

Motor vehicle impairment due to excessive drowsiness, substance and alcohol which affects reflexes, can be a factor in increased risk of a vehicle collision.

NHTSA, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, gathers information on all vehicle crashes, which includes bus collisions. The administration reports that nearly 100 people were killed, and collisions which involve a school vehicle, but nearly 10% of those who die are actually passengers on buses.

Pedestrians, bicyclists, and other victims of school bus collisions comprise over 90 percent of vehicle fatalities.

Nearly 9/10 of fatalities related to school buses are other motor vehicle operators.

Although many states do not stipulate children while riding a schoolbus to wear seat belts, the children, statistically, are safer riding in a school bus than occupying a passenger vehicle.

Contact us for a free consultation or call Anzalone Law Firm PLLC, at: 603.548.3797.