While public awareness campaigns about illegally passing stopped school buses increase nationwide, the National School Bus Loading and Unloading Survey finds that school buses and their drivers accounted for all the student fatalities reported for the 2024-2025 school year.
The 2024-2025 National School Bus Loading and Unloading Survey, released Sunday at the National State Director of Pupil Transportation Services conferences in Washington, D.C., reported that six fatalities occurred in five states, with Louisiana reporting two. Four states did not participate in the survey, the most non-responses since 2015.
Over 55 years, the annual survey conducted by the Kansas State Department of Education’s School Transportation Safety Unit says school buses account for 56.5 percent of all reported fatalities, with other vehicles accounting for 39.2 percent and “other” 4.2 percent.
Several fatalities during the 2024-2025 school year occurred similarly. In Missouri, a 9-year-old girl had just exited her school bus. As the bus pulled away from the curb and began preparing to turn left, the student ran along the left side of the bus for unknown reasons. She was struck and killed by the rear left wheels.
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A similar situation occurred in Wisconsin. A 5-year-old boy had unloaded the school bus at school. However, the student had dropped an item and crawled under the bus to retrieve it as the school bus driver pulled away. The student was struck and killed by the left rear dual wheels.
A 5-year-old Massachusetts boy unloaded from the school bus when the vehicle moved forward, and it struck and killed the child. The boy was killed by the left front wheel.
In Louisiana, a 7-year-old exited the school bus and was walking in front of it as the driver pulled away from the stop. He was struck and killed by the right front and right rear dual wheels of the bus.
Also in Louisiana, a 6-year-old boy was running to catch the school bus. He was in front of the bus as it pulled away from the stop, and he was struck and killed by the front of the school bus.
Similarly, in Texas, a 5-year-old was running to catch the bus. He, too, was in front of the bus as it pulled away from the stop. He was then struck and killed by the left front wheels.
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Half of the fatalities took place on the trip to school, the other half on the trip home. All the students killed were under 10 years old. Three were 5 years old. The National School Bus Loading and Unloading Survey stated that during the past 55 years of the survey, 73 percent of fatalities occurred to students 9 years of age and under.
Three of the fatalities took place on a Thursday, and two took place in the month of April. For five of the fatalities, the weather conditions were clear and in daylight, with one being reported during cloudy conditions and one during dark. Two fatalities were reported in rural areas, whereas four were considered urban. In all fatalities, road conditions were dry.
The survey is based on police reports of student fatalities at school bus stops when the bus was on scene at the time of the incident.
