Bus with car seats to transform safety of school transport

In this country, it is not a legal requirement for registered operators to use appropriate child restraints. With the high number of bus accidents that occur frequently, sadly often with children on board, we need to relook at how we are prioritising our children’s safety. According to Aliasgher Janmohammed, project manager for the Prevention of Injuries Impacting Children in South Africa, children under 18 are twice as likely to be killed on South African roads than anywhere else in the world. He further notes that the majority of child road fatalities occur during the week primarily after school (between 1pm and 6pm).

Identifying the need for reliable and safe group transportation for scholars, Cool (kids’) Cabs founder, Tiffini Hein, expanded their existing fleet to include The Big Yellow Bus, which can transport up to 20 children, all in appropriately installed car seats.

“We’ve been in operation for 10 years and every day I am surprised at the most basic safety standards that aren’t being met when transporting children. Car seats not in place, small children sitting in the front seat or busses with children running up and down the aisle. Even busses with lap belts are simply not enough, you cannot correctly install a car seat and this for us is a non-negotiable when it comes to public transport. We all know that basic safety requirements aren’t being met but many parents have not had another option until now,” says Hein.

Legally, South Africa only requires children under the age of three to travel in a car seat in a private vehicle. However, this requirement is deficient and specifically precludes registered operators, allowing them to profit from unsafely transporting children. Best practise dictates that a child needs to meet the age, weight and height requirement in order to be able to travel without a car seat or child restraint – this entails that a child is 12 years or older, weighs at least 36kg and is taller than 1.5m before moving out of a booster seat and into a seatbelt alone.

In South Africa, children are being placed into vehicles daily, that do not protect them. This is not a problem exclusive to low income schools, this is a daily occurrence at the most affluent and prestigious schools, both for regular scholar transport and for school outings, where external buses are hired in for ad hoc needs.

The Big Yellow Bus provides a host of safety features including car seats, correctly installed on every seat, a feature not currently available on any other service in South Africa. The bus also boasts 24/7 live tracking from a highly skilled control room, onboard cameras, highly visible branding and the highest vehicle safety features. The Big Yellow Bus is driven by a vetted female only crew who are clearly presented in uniform with a host of training under their belt (not limited to defensive driving, hijack prevention and car seat installation). Parents can expect SMS notifications generated by the control room, on pick up and drop off, ensuring they know the whereabouts of their child at all points.

For more information, visit: www.coolkidscabs.co.za