Every year, thousands of bus accidents occur in the United States, many resulting in fatalities. Due to the fact that buses by their nature carry large groups of passengers, often for long distances, the risk of injury and death in a bus accident is high. What factors contribute to bus accidents in the United States? Although initial media reports of such incidents often cite the bus company’s safety record and poor maintenance as the cause for most bus accidents, it is useful to look more closely at some of the latest data on bus accidents in the United States.
An important aspect to note when analyzing the research is that there data concerning fatalities related to bus accidents will include not only occupants of the bus, but also occupants of other vehicles that were involved in the accident, as well as pedestrians. In addition, the data for local buses such as city and school buses is often separated from data for long distance buses such as tour coaches.
A study released by the National Transportation Safety Board in 2011 revealed that approximately 241 million people make journeys on long distance charter and tour buses each year. The study also noted that commercial motor vehicles, such as buses, were more likely to be involved in fatal accidents than privately registered vehicles, however the individual death rate per person in such accidents was higher for passenger cars than for buses, with a bus occupant fatality rate of 45 deaths per 100 000 accidents compared to 251 deaths per 100 000 accidents for passengers in privately owned motor cars.
According to a 2012 study in the Journal of Safety Research, there are a number of factors related to the bus driver that increase the likelihood of the bus being involved in an accident. Young, inexperienced bus drivers were at high risk of causing accidents, however the accident risk also increases in drivers over the age of 65 years. The study also revealed that only a small proportion (4 percent) of bus drivers involved in fatal accidents were charged with offenses such as driving under the influence of alcohol or other mind altering substances, driving while over tired and reckless driving.
The safety of bus transportation has a long history as a political issue, and political debates and legal reforms are often instituted in response to high profile, high fatality accidents. One such reform was the 2011 Motor-coach Enhanced Safety Act, which introduced a number of specific safety improvements in the industry.