As the new school year begins, the experienced Nashville personal injury lawyers at Phillip Miller & Associates urge parents to discuss school bus safety with their children.

According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, each year, approximately 19 school-age children die in school transportation-related traffic crashes.

We offer parents the following tips:

* Children should arrive at the bus stop at least five minutes early, and should not engage in horseplay.

* While on the bus, children should remain seated and facing forward. Hands and arms should be inside the vehicle.

* When boarding the bus, children should line up single file and use the handrail.

* Parents should remove loose drawstrings or ties on clothing, as these can snag on bus handrails.

* Children should cross the street at least 10 feet – or five “giant steps” – in front of the bus.

* Children should always wait for the bus to come to a complete stop before exiting, and exit from the front of the bus.

* If anything is dropped while boarding or exiting, children should ask the bus driver for assistance.

For these and other helpful road safety tips visit the website of Phillip Miller & Associates or call us at 615-356-2000 if you have questions, or need to consult about an automobile accident.

School Bus Safety

As an experienced Nashville automobile accident attorney I’d like to take this opportunity to remind my readers that school is back in session and in your everyday drive you will be coming into contact with those large yellow things with blinking lights called school buses. They are yellow and have blinking emergency lights so that drivers will practice safety around them so that children don’t die.

Two Nashville area automobile school bus collisions leave three children hospitalized with injuries. The Nashville accident occurred when a pickup truck slammed into the rear of a school bus stopped at a railroad crossing. The second school bus automobile accident occurred when a teen aged driver slammed into the back of the bus.

Since 1996, 1,536 people have died in school transportation-related crashes an average of 140 fatalities per year. Most of the people who lost their lives in those crashes (72%) were occupants of other vehicles involved. Non-occupants (pedestrians, bicyclists, etc.) accounted for 20 percent of the deaths, and occupants of school transportation vehicles accounted for 7 percent.

As an experienced Nashville automobile accident attorney I’m trying to visualize how these accidents could have taken place. School buses, as I mentioned above, are large and yellow and the rear end of the bus is adorned with an array of warning lights and signs that remind the drivers following them that the school bus always stops at rail road crossings.

Analyzing these case from only the information in the articles is difficult, but it’s obvious that both of the drivers who hit the buses were somehow distracted by something not related to their driving and not paying attention to the road in front of them. According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration driver inattention is the leading factor in most crashes. Nearly 80 percent of crashes and 65 percent of near-crashes involved some form of driver inattention within three seconds before the event.  Primary causes of driver inattention are distracting activities, such as cell phone use, and drowsiness.

If you or a family member is injured or killed in Tennessee school bus accident contact the experienced Nashville automobile accident lawyers at Phillip Miller & Associates and put a Board Certified Civil trial lawyer on your side.

Practice School Bus Safety

A thoughtful public school official in Alcoa, Tennessee listened to the district’s school bus drivers and conducted a study of dangerous areas along the school pick up and delivery routes. According to an article on the web site of WBIR a Knoxville TV station, Director of Schools, Tom Shamblin has suggested that the School Board to remove certain stops that were considered dangerous. A vote is scheduled for the December 15^th Board meeting. I rooting for the clear thinkers on the school board.

According to the National Safety Council In the selection of school sites, major consideration should be given to the safety of pupils riding school buses.  These vehicles will be forced to utilize the roads in and around the school site plus public highways leading into the school area.  High-density traffic flow near school exits and entrances due to the proximity of super highways, periodic commercial traffic or massive commuter traffic from industrial plans should be avoided. It is also suggested that boards of education solicit the help of school transportation professionals, school superintendents, traffic engineers, and other state officials in evaluating possible school sites.

According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration since 1996 there have been about 417,705 fatal motor vehicle traffic crashes. Of those, 0.33 percent (1,387) were classified as school transportation-related. Since 1996, 1,536 people have died in school transportation-related crashes, an average of 140 fatalities per year. Most of the people who lost their lives in those crashes (72%) were occupants of other vehicles involved. Non-occupants (pedestrians, bicyclists, etc.) accounted for 20 percent of the deaths, and occupants of school transportation vehicles accounted for 7 percent.

It’s up to clear thinking public officials to address these issues and it is our responsibility as motor vehicle operators to do our part in making the roads safe for our children. Teach your children school bus safety, teach your teen drivers to pay particular attention in school zones and by all means make yourself a good example to others. If you see a driver acting dangerously dial 911 or *847 for the Tennessee State Troopers.

If you or a loved one is injured in a Tennessee school bus crashes you owe it to yourself and your family to take advntage of a free consultation with one of the experienced Nashville automobile accident attorney’s at Phillip Miller & Associates and find out about your rights and remedies.