Driver of car hurt in collision with school bus
MILWAUKIE, Ore. -- A driver of a car was hurt in a collision with a school bus near Milwaukie Wednesday morning.
There were three students on the bus and none of them or the school bus driver were hurt, according to Clackamas County sheriff's deputies. The driver of the car, 24-year-old Kenneth Ridings of Milwaukie, was taken to the hospital.
Deputies said the bus driver, 54-year-old Mark Harvey, saw Ridings' car pull out in front of him from a stop sign, but he couldn't stop in time to prevent a collision.
Ridings will be cited for failure to obey a stop sign, deputies said.
The crash took place near SE Oatfield Road and SE Pinehurst Avenue, about one mile from the View Acres Elementary School. It is unknown if the students were headed to that school.
It's the second local crash involving a school bus in two days. On Tuesday, a school bus was knocked on its side near Molalla after a collision with a semi truck.
Two students were hurt in that crash but their injuries were not life-threatening. The school bus driver was cited.
Guy tried to beat the bus so he wouldn't have to follow it.
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@Yamhill354 I bet that is closer to the truth.Â
Wow... another crash involving a school bus..! Â Â Are there ore of these happening lately, or are we just hearing / reading about more of them? Â Â
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Glad the kids and the bus driver are OK; hope the driver of the car will recover... Â Â
At least we keep getting more and more statistical support for why seatbelts are unnecessary in school buses. Â Hell, the one yesterday got knocked clean over by a semi and no one was seriously hurt.
 @Festivus I think that the statistical safety of school buses can be attributed to their environment of slow, city driving where the compartmentalization (big cushioned seats that maintain the kids bouncing around) works best.  However, I think that school buses should provide seat belts for highway speeds for field trips, away games, and the like where decelerating into even a padded seat from 65 to 0 in a second could be fatal.
 @negativerep  @Festivus The current design of the school bus seats, coupled with shorter (pre-middle school) students is why there are typically no seat belts in them. First, only the window seats would be able to have shoulder harness belts (without major design changes to the seats structure), so the aisle seats would end up only having lap belts. Next, think of the physics of what would happen to a student who is 4' tall in a sudden deceleration. The fulcrum effect would make it more likely to cause head/neck injuries to them.Â
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Both International & Blue Bird have done quite a few studies regarding the design of the buses, and if seatbelts would help or create more hazards to occupants. What they came away with was the realization that while taller students (middle & high school) students could benefit from the use of shoulder restraints, the lap belts (aisle seats) would make head & neck injuries more common among all heights, and particularly among shorter (read:younger) students.Â
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I am inclined to agree with you that middle & high school busses used on interstates should have some sort of passive restraint system.Â
 @negativerep Probably a reasonable compromise.  You can outfit part of the fleet with seat belts, leave the rest alone, and ensure that the belts are used on field trips. Â
Who was traveling with te right of way on Oatfield?
 @WebFootSTi The bus had the right of way. The driver who was hurt ran a stop sign and pulled in front of the bus.