The Minnesota Department of Public Safety Office of Traffic Safety (OTS) announced 411 total deaths in its 2010 “Crash Facts” — the lowest number since 1944. Of the total 74,073 crashes in 2010, 611 involved school buses. This total represents a 9-percent decrease in school bus crashes from the prior year.
The annual traffic safety data report is available on the new OTS website.
Overall, four people were killed and 215 injured in the 611 school bus crashes, with three fatalities and 174 injuries resulting from collisions with other vehicles. The single pedestrian fatality involved a child who was struck after exiting the school bus. Fewer than 3 percent of school bus crashes occurred when the school bus stop arm was deployed. Only three injuries occurred when the stop arm was in use.
More crashes occurred during rush hour than any other time of day, with 64 percent of school bus crashes and related injuries occurring between 6 and 9 a.m. or 3 and 6 p.m. More than 90 percent of these crashes occurred during the school year months of September through May.
Population size or type of area (i.e., city, suburban or rural) seemed to play a small role, if any, in the 215 school bus crashes causing injury. An equal number of crashes (47) occurred in cities with populations of 250,000-plus as did those occurring in areas with smaller populations (10,000 to 24,999). The four fatalities occurred in the most populated cities as well as the least populated. Of the 215 people injured, 83 were aged 19 years old and younger. Of those injured inside the bus, two-thirds (64) were under the age of 20.
Because some of the 611 school bus crashes involved more than one bus, a total of 615 school buses crashed. Police reports showed there was “no clear contributing factor” for half of the school bus drivers involved. For the remainder, however, the top contributing factors were driver inattention or distraction (17 percent), failure to yield right of way (13 percent) and improper turn (9 percent).
