Since the first all-steel school bus was built in 1930, school buses have been improving the lives of families all over the country. Today they transport 26 million students to and from school each day, saving families about 62 billion miles of driving each year. That’s a significant time and convenience benefit in the lives of busy parents. And millions of gallons of gas it saves means more room in family budgets. But if you think that families of school-age children are the only ones who benefit from school bus ridership, you might want to think again.

 

Educators, environmentalists and communities can also appreciate the many contributions of the school bus.

 

The morning commute can put a strain on the daily grind, but imagine how much worse it would be if an additional 17 million cars joined rush hour traffic. That’s what commuters could be facing without the school bus. One school bus carries the equivalent number of passengers as about 36 cars. So cutting service could result in more gridlock and longer commutes.  In fact, the school bus transports more than half of the 50 million students who attend school. Like other forms of public transportation, the school bus provides benefits to the entire community—not just those who ride.

 

All those additional cars on the road would mean more emissions and higher concentrations of pollution in the air. Without the school bus, lungs would be breathing an additional 56.5 billion pounds of CO2 annually. That’s more CO2 than a 747 would emit during a century-long flight. And those environmental benefits have only gotten better each year as student populations grow and school buses become even cleaner due to strict Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) standards.

 

“Every school bus can take up to 36 cars off the road.  This limits the pollution, reduces traffic and allows for a better use of our collective resources.  The school bus is an amazing tool for communities all across the country.”

-Max Christensen, Immediate Past President, National Association of State Directors of Pupil Transportation Services.

 

There are important safety benefits too. Students are about 70 times more likely to arrive to school safely if they take the school bus instead of traveling by car. With teen drivers crashing at higher rates than adults, the school bus provides a much safer alternative. Its passengers can socialize, text and simply be children without the deadly risks involved with distracted driving—risks that affect everyone on the road.

 

Every community deserves the school bus. They save hundreds of lives each year, provide millions of jobs nationwide and are an important part of the education system.

 

Want to learn more about how you can support school bus ridership in your community? Visit schoolbusfacts.com for resources on ways to keep the community benefits of the school bus going strong.