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The Relative Risks of School Travel A National Perspective and Guidance for Local Community Risk Assessment -- Special Report 269 (2002) / Chapter Skim
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6 Conclusions and Recommendations
Pages 159-164

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From page 159...
... Changes in any one characteristic of school travel can lead to dramatic changes in the overall risk to the student population. Thus, it is important for school transportation decisions to reflect input from those representing a spectrum of disciplines and perspectives, including policy makers, transportation planners, traffic engineers, school administrators, drivers, parents and students, and possibly others who may have knowledge or expertise regarding the use and safety of the various modes used for school travel.
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From page 160...
... represent one way of lowering risks that should be considered. This is not, however, the only way to manage the risk associated with school travel; measures designed to enhance the safety of particular modes -- e.g., changing school bus pickup and drop-off locations, changing passenger vehicle pickup and drop-off locations, enforcing bicycle helmet laws, and implementing and enforcing graduated driver licensing programs -- can also be employed.
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From page 161...
... The risk management framework can help inform local decisions on such matters as school siting, student parking policies, and changes in the minimum walking distance (the distance from school below which school bus service is not provided)
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From page 162...
... School transportation planners and policy makers must also take into account budget constraints, local conditions and values, local data, and judgments about the relative safety and cost-effectiveness of alternative policies. Recommendation 2: Using a systematic risk management frame work, school districts should identify the risk factors most salient for the modes of school travel used by children in their community and identify approaches that can be used to manage and reduce those risks, including shifts to safer modes and safety improvements within each mode.
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From page 163...
... An integrated data system (one in which different databases would use many of the same variables, definitions, and data collection procedures) is needed to enable a better understanding of the risks associated with the various modes of travel, not just for school transportation safety, but for highway safety in general.
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From page 164...
... The national school bus loading zone fatality survey conducted annually by the Kansas Department of Education, for example, is a volunteer data collection structure that has provided valuable information for more than 30 years at minimal cost. It is also important to know the purpose for which data are to be used before they are collected.
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Key Terms

  • school transportation
  • transportation safety
  • various modes
  • relative risks
  • management framework

  • travel mode
  • passenger vehicles
  • school bus
  • school buses
  • safety improvements

  • teen drivers
  • normal school
  • school children
  • risk mitigation
  • school district

  • risk estimates
  • travel hours
  • fatality counts
  • passenger vehicle
  • transportation planners

  • alternative policies
  • adult drivers
  • highway safety
  • motor vehicles
  • student parking

  • helmet laws
  • minimum walking
  • collection efforts
  • using various
  • walking distance


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