3 hours ago, NoshowJones said:

I may be wrong but if a full bus had every passenger wearing a seat belt and the bus crashes and overturns, would the death and injury not be higher?

It's always a better outcome when any riders in a vehicle are strapped in. Those without seat belts can be thrown out and crushed by the vehicle, or thrown around the interior and hurt by hitting their heads , arms and legs. Fires do start, and they do have to get out, but being strapped in also means not being knocked out where they can't get out in the event of a fire, which are a little rare in accidents.

I feel so sorry for the two young lives lost and their parents. Such sad news. I shed a tear or two. They are now angels. God be with them.

1 hour ago, Grusa said:

No one has asked how many children on board, and how many authorised.

How can two be crushed under the bus, if all were inside?

Thrown out through opened windows?

1 hour ago, NoshowJones said:

Yes I do see your point, but at the same time, if you are strapped in  you cannot get out to dodge something that may trap you, or if the bus is on fire and you cannot get your finger on the safety belt release button.

I leave it to you to sell your theories to the authorities in the many countries that disagree with you.

 

I haven’t personally carried out any tests and have no skin in the game. Neither I nor any of my family use Thai buses.

6 hours ago, RJRS1301 said:

Since seat belts are compulsory, were they in use, if not why not?

Senseless tragedy.

Why does Thailand have so many incidents involving buses?

 

 

Seat belts may be compulsory but sadly, TIT where maintenance and Health & Safety "go out of the window".

This stock photo shows the typical school bus transport where I lived in rural Khon Kaen Province.

 

RIP young students and condolences to you families.

 

6 hours ago, RJRS1301 said:

Since seat belts are compulsory, were they in use, if not why not?

Senseless tragedy.

Why does Thailand have so many incidents involving buses?

 

 

Seat belts are compulsory on inter-provincial buses and public vans.

 

Not the local school bus dropping kiddie's home.

 

 

 

 

Speed limiters, breathalysers, properly trained drivers, seat belts, properly maintained buses........surely at least kids deserve this?

 

The schools buses that pass us everyday.....15 mile journey......have kids sat on the roof of the cabin and the cab.

6 hours ago, RJRS1301 said:

Since seat belts are compulsory, were they in use, if not why not?

Senseless tragedy.

Why does Thailand have so many incidents involving buses?

 

In many US states, seat belts in school buses are forbiden by law. I have no idea of the logic applied.

4 minutes ago, dddave said:

In many US states, seat belts in school buses are forbiden by law. I have no idea of the logic applied.

 

They hate being told what to do by the State or government.......the big argument is the kids will drown if they drive into a lake or burn if the bus catches fire and can't undo their safety belts.......

21 minutes ago, Burma Bill said:

 

Seat belts may be compulsory but sadly, TIT where maintenance and Health & Safety "go out of the window".

This stock photo shows the typical school bus transport where I lived in rural Khon Kaen Province.

 

RIP young students and condolences to you families.

 

 

 

Yep...see about four or five of these go by every morning and every evening

Several years ago now I was teaching at a school in Khon Kaen and had to go to Sattahip for a long weekend English Learning Camp in a full school bus.

We left at 22.00 hrs on the Friday evening and I know for a fact that the driver had been working all day taking kids to local functions and he only grabbed a few hours sleep in the baggage hold under the bus.

The journey took over 10 hours overnight and I didn’t sleep a wink for obvious reasons.

On the return journey I was sitting in the seat immediately behind the driver when he put on some deafening music for the kids and he then raised both arms and started clapping while putting his knees under the steering wheel to control the bus which was travelling at over 100kph!

I Screamed at the idiot to hold the steering wheel and reduce speed which he did reluctantly.

I reported the matter to the head of the English Dept but needless to say nothing was done and he didn’t get any form of reprimand.

 I vowed I would never go on another trip in that bus again 

The number of toxic personalities in this forum is astounding. I hope you're not my neighbor!😩
Anyone who has been in Thailand for more than 1 hour should know that maintenance is not a thing in this country. Yet, people immediately jump to all sorts of hideous conclusions about the bus driver. Perhaps this driver is devastated by what happened when he was confronted with a bus suddenly losing control due to a mechanical issue that he had no control over, but now he feels responsible for. Perhaps he was drunk. Who knows! But I'd rather assume the best of him rather than the worst until actually gaining knowledge of the facts. What kind of horrible world you guys must live in with these ridiculous cynical naysaying proclamations that instantly come out of your heart and mind. You are the bane of society. I feel sorry for you and everyone in your social circles.

10 hours ago, dddave said:

In many US states, seat belts in school buses are forbiden by law. I have no idea of the logic applied.

Where did you come up with this one???
In less than a minute I found that in 8 states they are mandatory.
And a federal law requires seat belts in smaller buses in all states. Larger buses apparently have been deemed very safe and the expense, too much to require them in a mode of transportation that is deemed very safe. It would take about like 2.5 billion USD to equip the school buses across the country with seat belts. That estimate came from an article in a school bus news-specific site back in 2015, so today it would be a lot more than 2.5 billion. Not sure if that includes ongoing maintenance costs of the belt systems.
A California education official site, summarizing the National Highway Traffic Safety Association report, estimated that the costs would be 100 million USD per year. The report cited that school buses remain one of the safest transportation modes, with a fatality rate of 0.2 per 100 million vehicle miles traveled compared to 1.5 for cars. 
All of this is of course regarding your post about the US. Of course Thai buses are in a different universe in their levels of safety. They are completely different vehicles and they are maintained in COMPLETELY different ways.
As for your, "I have no idea of the logic applied", there is MUCH more in the reports about the logic applied on the construction of the buses, the statistics, the costs, the driving of them, the extra safety laws around them, etc.... Do you seriously not know how much research goes into laws regarding this kind of thing? Yes, I know there is a lot of corruption and logic can sometimes be suspended, but if you have no idea about the logic of something, maybe that's because you never spent 5 minutes trying to find out? And if you did, you might find out that you are UTTERLY wrong about it. But you will happily spend 15 seconds writing a post to denigrate a country about something that you have not the slightest clue about. You might want to do a check on your bias and readjust.

 

 

17 hours ago, dddave said:

In many US states, seat belts in school buses are forbiden by law. I have no idea of the logic applied.

Logic + USA =oxymoron 

On 8/7/2025 at 9:56 PM, RJRS1301 said:

Total Bus Accidents

There were 13,452 bus accidents in 2024. 171 of these accidents were fatal for one or more persons involved.4 Feb 2025

 

Those numbers are just staggering, especially for such a small country.  

1 hour ago, RJRS1301 said:

Logic + USA =oxymoron 

 

One reason used to justify it is the seatbacks are extremely high.  Another reason is it would be impossible to get kids in the USA to use them.  Kids in the USA don't listen to their parents or anyone else.

On 8/7/2025 at 10:01 PM, fredwiggy said:

 The US had 26,000 alone in 2024 according to some stats.Stats vary when you research. School bus accidents happen all over, including here with many each year. This is something that can be easily avoided by hiring proven drivers who adhere to road laws and aren't allowed to use phones while driving. 

 

You can be even a tiny fender bender is reported in the USA.

 

There are very strict school bus requirements in the USA including annual driver education.  A school bus company that was my customer was unbelievably conservative with its drivers.

On 8/8/2025 at 9:05 AM, David T Pike said:

You forgot improper maintenance....

Brakes failed.

On 8/8/2025 at 9:57 AM, norfolkandchance said:

Wrong. No maintenance.

  Your right... My bad... 🙄

53 minutes ago, thaichiro said:

Brakes failed.

 Brake pads do that after several decades of use.... 🙄

On 8/8/2025 at 6:46 AM, NoshowJones said:

Yes I do see your point, but at the same time, if you are strapped in  you cannot get out to dodge something that may trap you, or if the bus is on fire and you cannot get your finger on the safety belt release button.

The reason for seatbelts is easily demonstrated by putting an egg in a box and shaking te box - the egg will break - now try and egg in a egg box - the egg is held firmly in place and doesn't break when shaken.

11 minutes ago, kwilco said:

The reason for seatbelts is easily demonstrated by putting an egg in a box and shaking te box - the egg will break - now try and egg in a egg box - the egg is held firmly in place and doesn't break when shaken.

 

 

That analogy is so simple (and good) it should be taught in Thai schools.

11 minutes ago, hotandsticky said:

 

 

That analogy is so simple (and good) it should be taught in Thai schools.

It was a British road safety ad of the 1960s.....presented by Jimmy Saville!!

 

What it does show is the importance of continual eduction in road safety from the authorities.

Of course the problem with seatbelts on buses and coaches in Thailand is there is no guarantee that the coaches have sufficiently strong anchorage points...and they all have to fit the passengers correctly .....and then getting people to wear them

On 8/8/2025 at 9:27 AM, dddave said:

In many US states, seat belts in school buses are forbiden by law. I have no idea of the logic applied.

tripe - No U.S. state makes seatbelts illegal; rather, seatbelts are mandatory in 49 states, with New Hampshire being the only exception, where seatbelt use is not required for adults. However, New Hampshire's law still mandates seatbelt use for minors under the age of 18. All vehicles are required to be sold with seatbelts due to federal requirements.

On 8/9/2025 at 4:21 AM, Showtime said:

 

Those numbers are just staggering, especially for such a small country.  

I don't think you really have a good perception of the situation.

In the UK  which is half the size of Thailand with a population about the same, the road death rate is about one tenth of that in Thailand however buses are only one third.....There are approximately 5,000 road collisions annually involving buses or coaches in the UK, with around 58% being fatal or serious accidents. The most common causes are driver error or vehicle technical faults. 

On 8/8/2025 at 8:16 PM, Sig said:

The number of toxic personalities in this forum is astounding. I hope you're not my neighbor!😩
Anyone who has been in Thailand for more than 1 hour should know that maintenance is not a thing in this country. Yet, people immediately jump to all sorts of hideous conclusions about the bus driver. Perhaps this driver is devastated by what happened when he was confronted with a bus suddenly losing control due to a mechanical issue that he had no control over, but now he feels responsible for. Perhaps he was drunk. Who knows! But I'd rather assume the best of him rather than the worst until actually gaining knowledge of the facts. What kind of horrible world you guys must live in with these ridiculous cynical naysaying proclamations that instantly come out of your heart and mind. You are the bane of society. I feel sorry for you and everyone in your social circles.

good points - there is an underlying reason for commercial drivers leaving the scene of a crash - if you look at your car insurance, you'll see there is a bail bond clause - this is because it is quite normal for the police to arrest anyone they can at the scene of a serious accident and hold them all in jail until they - te police- have decided what they think might have happened. In case of that happening many drivers run off and turn up later with a lawyer.

In the event of an accident yourself - you are not allowed to move any over the vehicles or leave the scene and have to wait for the police to arrive. However the is one VERY important point - you MUST immediately ring your insurance company - they will send an agent to the scene - usually within 20 minutes - this is vital to prevent things from getting out of hand and you.  could end up in jail. THey often get there efore the police and they act as an intemediary between you, the police and any third parties involved. NEVER try to sort it out yourself.