DAYTON, Ohio (WDTN) — School bus safety has become a rising trend in Ohio.
The Ohio School Bus Safety Task Force was formed after the tragic bus crash in Clark County on Aug. 25. The school bus overturned and one of the 52 children on board was killed in the crash.
Their mission is to prevent future tragedies by making recommendations for drivers, passengers, and parents. The task force met today and discussed the training of school bus drivers and if they need more training on top of what they are currently required to have.
At the meeting, the group discussed all requirements school bus drivers need in order to be certified. They also discussed what school districts use to hire drivers, including driving history and training test score.
The task force wants training instructors to do a walk through with school bus drivers. This would include a pre-check list that helps drivers learn every inch of their bus to make sure the children they are transporting are safe.
School bus drivers were also in attendance of the meeting.
They shared they would like to see more defensive driving training. They also requested extra safety measures due to people not stopping for the school bus stop sign.
Bus driver Matt Perkins wants to see a sign on the front and back.
“I had one driver run my reds about two weeks ago, and then I had another driver this morning and about ran my red. So just extra would be helpful,” said Perkins.
The group will meet again on Dec. 1 to discuss critical incident response.
