As the news has reported, the school bus and driver involved in the tragic crash in Chattanooga was outsourced to a company called Durham School Services.  24-year-old Johnthony Walker has been charged with five counts of vehicular homicide and one count of reckless endangerment. Durham School Services has stated all their drivers are fully vetted and must meet stringent qualifications.  This tragedy begs the question: should school buses, responsible entirely for the safety of children’s transportation, be contracted out?

The driver had only had his commercial license for about seven months and apparently had a previous bus accident, according to the chairman of the National Transportation Safety Board

Hart said looking at the bus company and their history will be part of the NTSB investigation. They have also started a mechanical inspection of the school bus, and will review school bus operations from the Hamilton County School District and Durham School Services.

The private company that owned the bus has 142 crashes with injuries and three fatalities in the last two years, federal records show.

Some are asking if school districts should outsource bus transportation.  Wouldn’t the districts have much more control and be better aware of their drivers and the mechanical soundness of the buses if they were hired locally by the districts such as the Cumberland County school system does?

And the other question that comes up every time there is an accident involving a school bus – should buses have seat belts?  Seat belts are on virtually every other form of transportation and even amusement rides.  We have laws that demand seat belts be worn in passenger vehicles.  But not for school buses transporting students. The answer given…it costs too much.  The latest estimate is around $7,000 – $10,000 per bus to retrofit the bus with seat belts.  A bus accident in California very similar to the one in Chattanooga resulted in no fatalities with most authorities saying it was because that bus was equipped with seat belts.  Many parents are asking ‘can you really put a price on my child’s safety?’