Here in Kentucky, our school buses are considered to be the safest in the nation, with multiple side and top exits. Sadly, these safety features come as the result of the two deadliest school bus accidents; the Prestonsburg Bus Wreck, where a school bus clipped a wrecker and plunged into the Big Sandy River, and the Carrollton Bus Crash, where a church bus was struck head-on by a drunk driver and burst into flames.
Twenty-seven people died in each of these tragic accidents, resulting in massive upgrades in school bus safety here in Kentucky. Most of the people killed in the Prestonsburg wreck drowned after being trapped in the bus, so they installed two roof exits in every bus in the state. With the Carrollton Crash, the front door was jammed by the impact and the path to the rear door was mostly blocked by flames from the ruptured fuel tanks, so a side door and four window exits are now required in every school bus.
From Wikipedia:
"Kentucky now requires all school buses to have nine emergency exits—more than any other federal or state standard. This includes front and back doors, a side door, four emergency windows and two roof exits. The bus that crashed at Carrollton had only front and back exits, and 11 rows of 39" seats, including the crucial area near the rear door.
Buses used by Kentucky schools must also have a cage around the fuel tank, a stronger frame and roof to resist crumpling on impact and rollover, high-backed seats, extra seat padding, a fuel system that slows leaks, flame-retardant seats and floors, reflective tape on all emergency exits, and strobe lights on the exterior. Schools also must have a diesel-powered fleet.
In 1991, Kentucky enacted stricter drunk driving laws."
Not a bad idea for all school buses. The story of the Kentucky crash was horrifying. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carrollton,_Kentucky_bus_collision