KASSON, Minnesota (STPNS) -- K-M School District transportation director Larry Meeker attended a conference in Mankato last year. One of the speakers was from California, which is one of a half dozen states where seat belts on school buses are mandatory. He said that day for Minnesota is going to come.

Last Tuesday afternoon four young people were killed in a bus rollover involving two other vehicles near Cottonwood, MN. There were several others injured in the accident, which could speed up the debate on making seat belts mandatory on school buses in Minnesota.



Meeker said the K-M School District has 21 buses that go on 16 routes, hauling 1,500 children making two trips each day in the morning and afternoon, plus mid-day kindergarten routes. Add to that all of the trips buses make for athletic and other extra curricular events and it adds up to thousands of students being transported weekly from the K-M district.

The only vehicles with four or more wheels on the road where seat belts are not required is a bus. The only person with a seat belt is the driver. "Seat belts are not mandatory, but it is coming," said Meeker. For safety reasons all of the new buses ordered now must have a back rest that is four inches higher than the current standard.

At the conference there was talk of retrofitting seat belts on current buses, which would probably require different flooring for bolting the belts, and then there is the cost factor. Another issue discussed is how to "police" students and make sure they are wearing the seat belts. "With 80 students on a bus, and many of them not even able to see over the seat," it would be difficult for a driver to enforce," added Meeker.

Jon Goetz of Kasson manages First Student Bus Service of Rochester and they handle the transportation of students in the Rochester school district. He said an accident like the one in Cottonwood has been a topic of discussion among the drivers. Being in the business makes it impossible to ignore.

The topic of what might have happened if the school bus had seat belts came up too. Goetz said the newer buses have the higher backs and padded backs on the seats. He said each seating area is what they call compartmentalized. He said this safety feature has proven to be extremely safe. The key is to make sure students are sitting down at all times and with some of the younger students it's hard for a driver to even see them.

The greatest concern most bus drivers have in this part of the country is the weather. The weather has offered interesting challenges since the first of the year too, between the bitter cold, snow, ice and drifting snow.

Bus drivers are trained to be safety conscious. But as the K-M transportation director stated, "We can't control how other people drive."

What happened in Cottonwood is a bus driver's nightmare. K-M bus driver Al Hames of Kasson, who has been driving a route for 10 years, said it really hit close to home when he saw the accident on television. "I don't think I could ever drive a bus again if I was ever involved in something like that," he said.

Knock on wood. K-M bus safety records have been excellent. What these experienced drivers can't control though is the weather or predict what other drivers are going to do.

Would seat belts have made a difference in saving lives in the Cottonwood tragedy? Larry Meeker suspects in a rollover like that they may have helped.

Minnesota is a leader in education and public safety. For that reason Meeker believes the state will someday make seat belts mandatory on all new buses. There will be cost involved, but how do you put a price on a human life?