[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 152 (2006), Part 11] [House] [Pages 14823-14825] [From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]SUPPORTING THE GOALS AND IDEALS OF SCHOOL BUS SAFETY WEEK Mr. MARCHANT. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and agree to the resolution (H. Res. 498) supporting the goals and ideals of School Bus Safety Week. [[Page 14824]] The Clerk read as follows: H. Res. 498 Whereas approximately 480,000 yellow school buses carry 25 million children to and from school every weekday; Whereas America's 480,000 school buses comprise the largest mass transportation fleet in the country, 2.5 times the size of all other forms of mass transportation--transit, intercity buses, commercial airlines, and rail--combined; Whereas during the school year, school buses make more than 50 million passenger trips daily carrying the Nation's future--our children; Whereas school bus transportation is eight times safer than traveling in a passenger vehicle and is the safest form of ground transportation available; Whereas school buses meet higher construction, equipment, and inspection standards than any other vehicle, and school bus drivers meet higher qualification, training, and testing standards than any other drivers; Whereas according to the National Academy of Sciences, an average of 820 students are killed annually during school transportation hours, but less than 2 percent of them are school bus passengers; Whereas despite the industry's best efforts, accidents still happen; Whereas an average of seven school-age passengers are killed in school bus crashes each year, and an average of 19 children are killed each year getting on and off the bus; Whereas most of those killed are children aged five to seven, and most often those children are killed in the area immediately surrounding the bus--either by a passing vehicle or by the bus itself; Whereas School Bus Safety Week, which is celebrated in more than 40 States and sponsored by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), was created to remind all students of the best ways to get on and off the bus in an effort to enhance the safety of the Nation's children; Whereas School Bus Safety Week, which dates back to 1966, also recognizes the hard work and dedication of school transportation personnel, especially the many school bus drivers who ensure a safe journey each and every day; and Whereas School Bus Safety Week, celebrated the third week in October, promotes awareness through local and State poster and speech contests, lessons utilizing school bus safety community awareness kits, and other activities built around themes that raise awareness of school bus safety issues: Now, therefore, be it Resolved, That the House of Representatives supports the goals and ideals of School Bus Safety Week. The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from Texas (Mr. Marchant) and the gentleman from Missouri (Mr. Clay) each will control 20 minutes. The Chair recognizes the gentleman from Texas. General Leave Mr. MARCHANT. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members have 5 legislative days within which to revise and extend their remarks and include extraneous material on the resolution under consideration. The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the gentleman from Texas? There was no objection. Mr. MARCHANT. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I might consume. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of H. Res. 498 offered by the distinguished gentleman from Tennessee (Mr. Duncan). This resolution would support the goals and ideals of a National School Bus Safety Week. In our Nation, approximately 22.5 million children ride school buses to and from school each day, which accounts for 54 percent of all students attending grade school. In fact, the more than 440,000 public school buses travel approximately 5 billion miles each year, comprising the largest mass transportation fleet in the country, 2\1/2\ times the size of all other forms of mass transportation, and according to statistics, representing the safest form of highway transportation. Even so, according to the National Highway Transportation Safety Administration, each year for the past 11 years, an average of 35 school-age children have died in school bus-related traffic accidents. This is why it is vital that drivers, mechanics and supervisors, as well as parents and children, observe certain rules and regulations pertaining to all the operations of school bus safety. The week of October 15 through October 21 will educate children around the country about school bus safety precautions with special activities such as poster contests to help bring the valuable information to our Nation's children. I urge all Members to come together to encourage the educational importance of a School Bus Safety Week by adopting H. Res. 498. Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time. Mr. CLAY. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Mr. Speaker, students are at a much greater risk while traveling to and from school than at any other time during their school day. During the 1997-98 school year, about 800 children from the ages of 5 through 18 were killed during normal school transportation hours, while traveling by passenger car, foot, bicycle, public transportation or school bus. Although school buses are the safest form of highway transportation, they are not fail-safe. The most dangerous part of the school bus ride is getting on and off the school bus. Fatalities that occur when students board and exit school buses account for approximately three times as many school bus- related fatalities than for fatalities that occur when the school buses are occupied. The area around the bus when the bus is loading and unloading is called the danger zone. The danger zone is comprised of the areas outside of the bus where the children are in the most danger of not being seen by the driver. It is the 10 feet in front of the bus where the driver is too high to see a child, 10-foot-long blind spots that run along both sides of the bus, and the area behind the school bus. The goal of National School Bus Safety Week is to ensure safe, efficient, economical and high-quality transportation for school children on their trips to and from school and school-related activities. This is certainly a goal we all can support, and I urge my colleagues to do so. Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time. Mr. MARCHANT. Mr. Speaker, I yield as much time as he may consume to my distinguished colleague, the Congressman from Tennessee (Mr. Duncan). Mr. DUNCAN. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman from Texas for yielding me this time and for managing this resolution and for his comments, as well as those of our distinguished colleague from Missouri. Mr. Speaker, last October, I introduced House Resolution 498, which supports the goals and ideals promoted by School Bus Safety Week. This bill certainly has bipartisan support with 62 cosponsors. Also, all three national school bus associations are in support of this resolution: the National Association of Pupil Transportation, the National Association of State Directors of Pupil Transportation, and the National School Transportation Association. America's 480,000 school buses comprise the largest mass transportation fleet in the country, 2\1/2\ times the size of all other forms of mass transportation, transit, intercity buses, commercial airlines, and rail combined. During the school year, school buses make more than 50 million passenger trips daily. School Bus Safety Week, which is celebrated in more than 40 States and sponsored by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, was created to remind all students of the best ways to get on and off the bus and of other ways to enhance the safety of our Nation's children. According to the National Academy of Sciences, an average of 820 students are killed annually during school transportation hours, but less than 2 percent of them are school bus passengers. Most of those killed are children aged 5 to 7, and most often those children are killed in the area immediately surrounding the bus, either by a passing vehicle or occasionally by the bus itself. While school bus transportation is eight times safer than traveling in a passenger vehicle and is the safest form of ground transportation available, unfortunately, accidents still happen. An average of seven school-age passengers are killed in school bus crashes each year, and an average of 19 children are [[Page 14825]] killed getting on and off the bus each year. Many of our communities honor School Bus Safety Week through local and State poster and speech contests, lessons utilized in School Bus Safety Community Awareness kits and other activities built around themes that raise awareness of school bus safety issues. It is my hope that our children will be safer than ever before, and that our children will safely get on and off and travel on these school buses each day, and that drivers in our communities will be mindful of the laws designed to protect our Nation's school bus passengers. {time} 1500 This is a business dominated by individuals and very small businesses. Most school bus drivers are stay-at-home moms, retired people or others who need some part-time income. They do a really outstanding job and provide a great community service in helping keep our school children safe, and H. Res. 498 will help promote and improve that safety even further. Madam Speaker, I urge passage of this resolution. Mr. CLAY. Madam Speaker, I want to thank my colleagues, Mr. Marchant of Texas and as well as Mr. Duncan of Tennessee, and urge a favorable vote of passage of the School Bus Safety Week. I have no further requests for time, and I yield back the balance of my time. Mr. MARCHANT. Madam Speaker, I urge all Members to support the adoption of H. Res. 498, and I yield back the balance of my time. The SPEAKER pro tempore (Mrs. Emerson). The question is on the motion offered by the gentleman from Texas (Mr. Marchant) that the House suspend the rules and agree to the resolution, H. Res. 498. The question was taken. The SPEAKER pro tempore. In the opinion of the Chair, two-thirds of those present have voted in the affirmative. Mr. MARCHANT. Madam Speaker, on that I demand the yeas and nays. The yeas and nays were ordered. The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to clause 8 of rule XX and the Chair's prior announcement, further proceedings on this question will be postponed. ____________________