[Federal Register Volume 63, Number 206 (Monday, October 26, 1998)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 57089-57091]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 98-28569]


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DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

National Highway Traffic Safety Administration

49 CFR Part 571

[Docket Number NHTSA-98-4573]


School Bus Research Plan

AGENCY: National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), DOT.

ACTION: Request for comments.

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SUMMARY: On August 7, 1998, NHTSA sent to Congress a report titled, 
``School Bus Safety: Safe Passage for America's Children.'' The report 
outlined NHTSA's current and future actions on school bus safety. A 
comprehensive research plan for the next generation of occupant 
protection in school buses was announced. This notice seeks comments

[[Page 57090]]

and information pertinent to the execution of that plan. A copy of this 
report is available on NHTSA's web site at: http://www.nhtsa.dot.gov/
people/injury/buses/schbus/schbussafe.html.
    Every year, approximately 440,000 public school buses travel about 
4.3 billion miles to transport 23.5 million children to and from school 
and school-related activities. The school bus occupant fatality rate of 
0.2 fatalities per 100 million vehicle miles traveled (VMT) is much 
lower than the rates for passenger cars (1.5 per 100 million VMT) or 
light trucks and vans (1.3 per 100 million VMT). School bus 
transportation is one of the safest forms of transportation in the 
United States. On average, nine school bus occupants per year die in 
school bus crashes. While each of these fatalities is tragic, the 
numbers of fatalities among school bus occupants are extremely small 
when compared to those in other types of motor vehicles. For example, 
in 1997, five passenger occupants in a school bus body-type of vehicle 
died in a crash. During the same year, 4,811 children between the ages 
of 5 and 18 died in all other types of motor vehicles.
    This excellent safety record of school buses notwithstanding, NHTSA 
believes that school transportation should be held to the highest 
levels of safety, since such transportation involves the Nation's most 
precious cargo--children who represent our future.
    Even though compartmentalization has proven to be an excellent 
concept for injury mitigation, the agency has initiated an extensive 
research program to develop the next generation occupant protection 
system. The objective of NHTSA's Research Plan is to scientifically 
determine the real-world effectiveness of current Federal requirements 
for school bus occupant crash protection, evaluate alternative occupant 
crash protection systems in controlled laboratory tests that represent 
the types of real-world school bus crashes, and based on the findings, 
propose the next generation of occupant protection requirements for 
school buses. Each system studied must meet all of the following 
criteria: is likely to reduce the total number of injuries or 
fatalities associated with school bus crashes, provides protection to 
the whole range of occupants who are transported in schools buses, is 
technologically feasible, is reasonable in cost, and does not 
substantially reduce the occupant capacity of school buses or 
substantially inhibit emergency evacuation.

DATES: Comments must be received by December 28, 1998.
    All written comments should refer to the docket number and notice 
number in the heading of this notice and be submitted, preferably 10 
copies, to: DOT Docket Management Facility, U.S. Department of 
Transportation, Room PL-01, 400 7th Street, SW, Washington, DC 20590. 
The docket is open to the public from 10:00 am to 5 pm, Monday through 
Friday.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Linda McCray, Office of Vehicle Safety 
Research, NRD-11, NHTSA, 400 7th Street, SW, Washington, DC 20590 
(telephone 202-366-6375, Fax: 202-366-7237).

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The primary means of occupant protection for 
large school buses is a concept known as compartmentalization--strong, 
well padded, well anchored, high backed, closely spaced seats. Even 
though compartmentalization has proven to be an excellent concept for 
injury mitigation, the agency has initiated a research program to 
develop the next generation of occupant protection for school bus 
passengers. This comprehensive program will evaluate alternative 
occupant crash protection systems in controlled laboratory tests that 
represent the types of real world school bus crashes that produce 
injuries to passengers. A key component of this program will 
necessarily be a thorough search for better crash data. Existing state 
and school systems records will be searched for documentation on school 
bus crashes involving fatalities/injuries and specific crashes in which 
lap belts were used. Those crash data will be vital to defining the 
test conditions that best simulate the most injurious school bus 
crashes. Alternative systems will be tested and evaluated for their 
ability to protect the full range of sizes of school bus occupants. The 
systems tested must not significantly reduce the occupant capacity of 
the bus or significantly restrict emergency egress. If it is determined 
that all these criteria can be met, the agency will consider upgrading 
its occupant protection standards.

School Bus Research Plan

    Research will be conducted in three (3) phases: Phase I--Problem 
Definition, Phase II--Test Procedure Development, and Phase III--
Testing and Validation.
    Phase I: Problem Definition will consist of analyzing NHTSA's 
Fatality Analysis Reporting System (FARS), General Estimates System 
(GES) and National Automotive Sampling System databases for school bus 
crashes and corresponding injuries, a literature search for existing 
school bus related research (listed above), identification of safety 
systems that are currently available or will be in near term, and in-
depth special investigations of existing state and school system 
records on bus crashes involving fatalities/injuries and specific 
crashes in which occupants wore lap belts. The agency will conduct a 
detailed review of crash data to upgrade existing data to better define 
crashes that produce injury to occupants. The answers to the following 
items will be of help to the agency in determining its future course of 
action with respect to school buses.

    1. While the agency believes that it is aware of most of the 
research that evaluates the occupant protection in school buses, the 
agency is interested in research reports that documents the testing 
of safety devices or systems in modern school buses.
    2. The agency is interested in investigating crashes that have 
occurred in large school buses, particularly those crashes that have 
resulted in injuries, and is asking for assistance in locating 
detailed information on these school bus crashes.
    3. The agency is also interested in investigating crashes that 
have occurred in large and small school buses equipped with lap 
belts and is asking for assistance in locating detailed information 
on these school bus crashes.

    Phase II: Test Procedure Development will consist of developing 
test conditions that best simulate the types of school bus crashes that 
lead to serious injuries, as identified through Phase I research. Crash 
``pulses'' will be developed by conducting full scale school bus crash 
testing at various impact angles. Using the derived crash pulses, a 
sled test procedure (crash simulation) will be developed and validated. 
If necessary, new occupant protection countermeasures will be designed 
and developed, either by modifying existing systems and components, or 
developing new systems. Preliminary tests to verify the systems will be 
conducted prior to final sled testing. A sled test matrix to evaluate 
the new or altered occupant protection systems will be developed.
    In order to ensure that any safety enhancements/devices tested 
provide protection to the whole range of sizes of people that school 
buses transport, the agency is planning to use available anthropometric 
test dummies (ATDs) that represent the six-year-old child, the 5th 
percentile female and the 50th percentile male.
    Safety improvements currently under consideration for testing are 
lap belts, lap/torso belts, lap bars, bus side wall padding and 
armrests.

    4. Since lap belts have been required in small school buses for 
some time now, the

[[Page 57091]]

agency is also interested in obtaining information on whether there 
have been any lap belt-caused injuries to occupants of small school 
buses.
    5. The agency is concerned that widening of a school bus seat to 
allow for the placement of armrests will require that the school bus 
body be made wider in order to maintain the same capacity. Should 
this be a serious concern, it is important for the agency to know 
the extent to which the widening of the school bus seat would cause 
the capacity to be reduced or the widening of school bus body would 
cause maneuverability problems.

    The agency is also interested in obtaining information on other 
devices/systems that may improve occupant protection in school bus 
crashes. Please note, NHTSA does not have legal authority to provide 
appropriated funds for the private development of commercial products. 
Suggestions should be accompanied by a statement of the rationale for 
the suggested device/system and the expected consequences that such 
devices/systems will have on school bus transportation. Suggestions 
should address at least the following considerations:
    Administrative/compliance burdens,
    Cost effectiveness,
    Costs of the existing regulation and the proposed changes to 
consumers,
    Costs of testing or certification to regulated parties,
    Effects on safety,
    Effects on small businesses,
    Enforceability of the standard, and
    Whether the suggestion reflects a ``common sense'' approach to 
solving the problem
    Statements should be as specific as possible and provide the best 
available supporting information. Statements also should specify 
whether any change recommended in the regulatory process would require 
a legislative change in NHTSA's authority.
    Phase III: Testing and Validation will consist of testing the 
various occupant protection safety systems developed or identified. The 
types of tests to be conducted will be both static and dynamic. Test 
results will be analyzed and a final report published.
    In order to provide for a more controlled environment the agency is 
planning to evaluate each device/system by conducting crash simulations 
(sled tests).

Submission of Comments

    NHTSA invites written comments from all interested parties. It is 
requested but not required that 10 copies be submitted.
    If a commenter wishes to submit certain information under a claim 
of confidentiality, three copies of the complete submission, including 
purportedly confidential business information, should be submitted to 
the Chief Counsel, NHTSA, Room 5219, at the street address given above, 
and copies from which the purportedly confidential information has been 
deleted should be submitted to the Docket Section. A request for 
confidentiality should be accompanied by a cover letter setting forth 
the information specified in the agency's confidential business 
information regulation (49 CFR part 512.)
    All comments received before the close of business on the comment 
closing date indicated above will be considered. Comments will be 
available for inspection in the docket.
    After the closing date, NHTSA will continue to file relevant 
information in the docket as it becomes available. It is therefore 
recommended that interested persons continue to examine the docket for 
new material.

    Authority: 49 U.S.C. 322, 30111, 30115, 30117, and 30166; 
delegation of authority at 49 CFR 1.50.

    Issued: October 20, 1998.
L. Robert Shelton,
Associate Administrator for Safety Performance Standards.
[FR Doc. 98-28569 Filed 10-23-98; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4910-59-P