ARE CHARTER BUSES SAFE DURING TRAVEL?

CHARTER BUS SAFETY STATISTICS:

AccordingtotheBureauofTransportation,therewere36,096highwaydeathsin2019,and only35onabus.That’sonly0.1%oftotaldeaths,makingbusesmuchsaferthancars,or motorcycles.

WeneedanaccurateideaofhowsafeTourBusRentalsare,weneedtolookatthefatality ratepermiletraveled.Accordingtoa2013study,“ComparativelytheFatalityRisksinUnited StatesTransportation,firsttimepublished Research paper in Transportation Economics,Dr. IanSavageofNorthwesternUniversitycalculatedthatthefatalityrateperbillionmilesof buseswasonly0.11%or0.11deathsper1billionmiles.Forcomparison,herearethe numbersforotheroptionsoftransportation:

• Airplanesat0.07deathsperbillionmiles

• Busesat0.11deathsperbillionmiles

• MassTransitrailat0.24deathsperbillionmiles

• Railat0.43deathsperbillionmiles

• Ferriesat3.17deathsperbillionmiles

• Carsat7.28deathsperbillionmiles

• Motorcyclesat212.57deathsperbillionmiles

Aswecansee,busesarethesecond-safestformoftransportation. CoachBusRentalsare alsomuchsaferthancars,anotherpopulartransportationmethodforgroups.Soifsafetyis yourpriorityandyoudon’twanttofly,bookingaCharterBusRental andenjoyingthetrip withyourgroupisgreat.

WHY CHARTER BUSES ARE SO SAFE?

Busesaresafeascomparedtocarsbecausethey’reregulatedbytheFederalMotorCarrier SafetyAdministration(FMCSA),adivisionoftheDepartmentofTransportation.Everyfew

yearstheFMCSAlaunchesaninspectionofmotorcoachcompanies’buses,drug-testing policies,anddrivers’records.Afterinspection,themotorcompanyreceivesascoreofthe satisfactoryletter.Youshouldneverbookwitha LuxuryBusRental companythatscored lowerthansatisfactory.

TheFMCSA issues“SafeStat”scoresbasedonroadaccidents,drivers,vehicles,andsafety management.A75scoreoraboveisconsidereddeficient,butifthescoreislowto75,you needtothink aboutEntertainerBusRental company.

• Thecompanyisauthorizedtotransportpassengers

• Companyisinsured

• Howmanytimesisthecompanyoutofservice

• Howmanynumbersofaccidentsthecompanyhasbeenin

• lastinspectiontime

SAFETY REQUIREMENTS FOR CHARTER BUS DRIVERS:

AllEliteCoachdriversneedtohaveacommercialdriver’slicense.Thatmaynotabigdeal, buttheCDLDepartmentactuallyhasalotofrequirementsforaregulardriver’slicense.

First,allCoachBusRentaldriversmusthavetheirdrivingrecordforthepast10years(orfor howeverlongthey’vebeendriving ormustbeatleast21toapplyforaCDL).Learners’

PermitsmustdrivewithaCDLholderfor14daysbeforetheycanapplyfortheCommercial Driver’sLicense.Afterdrivingwithapermit,theyalsopassaSkillsTest,aVehicleInspection Test,andaRoadTestbeforetheyreceivetheirCDL.

OnceaLuxuryTourCoachdriverhastheirlicense,hestillneedstohaveaphysicaleverytwo yearsperiodandalsoregularlyundergodrugandalcoholtesting.That’swhydriverscan oftenoperatetheirvehiclesfarmoresafelythancarorSUVdrivers.

RESTRICTIONS ON DRIVING HOURS:

TheFederalMotorCarrierSafetyAdministrationrulesabouthowlong EliteTransportation driverscandrive.Thedrivercandrivethebusforupto10hoursandneedan8-hourbreak afterbeingondutyfor15hours.Ondutymeansnotjustdriving,butalsomaintenance, record-keeping,orsittingonthebusforwaiting.Thedriverscanworkamaximumof60hours for7daysor70hoursfor8days.

CHARTER BUS MAINTENANCE AND SAFETY:

Charterbusesareoftensaferthancarsbecausetheyhavestrictmaintenancestandards.If anykindofdamageoccurs,thebusmustbeoutofserviceandimmediatelyprovethe repairingdocumentsfortheFMCSA.

EveryCharterBusRentalNearMe receivesanannualinspectionfromanFMCSA-certified technician, beforedriverssetoutonatrip,theyhavetocompleteawrittenreportaboutthe conditionofthebusandcheckonemergencyexits.

TheBusesalsocomewithsafetyfeatures.MostCharter Buseshaveasteelchassisthatkeeps thevehicleinonepieceandhelpsitabsorbimpacts,and full-sizebuseshavealowcenterof gravitytoreducetheriskofrollover.

Since2016CharterBusRentalNYChasseatbelts,andseatshavetocushiontoprotectyou intheeventofasuddenstartorstop.Thewindowsareglazedtomakethemlesslikelyto break,andsomewindowsareusedasemergencyexits.

NightLinerBusRental accidentsareveryrareBecausethepassengerseatsaresohighona full-sizedbussoit’sgoodtoknowthebushasfeaturestokeepyourgroupsafe.