National School Bus Safety Week Runs October 19-23; NHTSA Data Show 1,069 Killed in School-Bus-Related Crashes Over a Decade
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) says National School Bus Safety Week 2026 runs October 19-23, with stopping illegal school bus passing among this year's messaging priorities. NHTSA has published English- and Spanish-language graphics, short videos and sample news releases for schools and communities to use during the week.
According to NHTSA statistics, from 2015 to 2024 there were 962 fatal school-bus-related crashes in the United States and 1,069 people were killed, an average of 107 fatalities a year; 204 of the dead were school-age children. Over the same period, 162 pedestrians were killed, almost 1.5 times the 119 occupants of school buses who died — the greatest danger is outside the bus. From 2000 to 2024, crashes involving a driver illegally passing a stopped school bus killed 63 people, almost half of them (27) pedestrians aged 18 or younger.
Under traffic law, when a school bus flashes its red lights and extends its stop arm, vehicles behind it and approaching from the opposite direction must come to a complete stop. NHTSA's campaign materials address drivers, parents and students, with detailed guidance on its Traffic Safety Marketing school bus safety page.
Published by GSM · USA (original Chinese edition)
Photo: 伸出停车臂的美国黄色校车，CC BY-SA 2.0，Wikimedia Commons
