Back to the Bus Stop: America’s School Transportation & School-Zone Risk Index
The yellow school bus is one of the safest vehicles on the road, but the trip between home and the classroom extends beyond the time a child spends inside it. The journey also includes walking to a stop, crossing a street, boarding or exiting, and navigating traffic around a school.
National Highway Traffic Safety Administration data shows that 110 people died in school-transportation-related crashes in 2024. Across the latest 10-year period, pedestrians and occupants of other vehicles accounted for a much larger share of deaths than school transportation passengers.
The Millar Law Firm analyzed fatal-crash records from 2015 through 2024 to identify where school transportation and school-zone traffic risks are most pronounced. The resulting index compares all 50 states and the District of Columbia, using four population-adjusted measures involving school buses, school-zone traffic controls, pedestrians, and pedalcyclists. A limited camera-gap modifier provides additional context about the prevalence of tracked license-plate-reader cameras.
The findings arrive as Georgia changes its approach to automated school-zone enforcement, raising a broader question: Where are children and other road users encountering the greatest risk during the school-day commute?
Georgia Changed Its School-Zone Camera Rules. Which States Face the Greatest Risk?
Georgia began the 2026–27 school year with a different set of rules for speed cameras in school zones. State lawmakers didn’t eliminate the programs. Instead, House Bill 651, which took effect July 1, 2026, changed how they may be operated. The law calls for clearer warning signs, routine accuracy testing, more detailed citation notices, and a process for investigating complaints. It also restricts when cameras may be used: on school days while classes are in session, as well as during the hour before school starts and the hour after it ends.
Another major change arrives in July 2027. From that point forward, local governments will generally have to secure voter approval before signing or renewing an agreement for school-zone speed cameras. If residents approve the program, that authorization lasts six years.
Rather than settling the camera debate at the state level, Georgia is leaving much of the decision to individual communities. School-zone speed cameras are permitted in several states, including Florida, Georgia, Maryland, North Carolina, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, and Virginia.
School-zone cameras were already a point of debate in Georgia before lawmakers took action. Complaints ranged from tickets issued at times when drivers believed enforcement should not have been active to concerns about the equipment and the amount of revenue generated by citations. Supporters saw a practical benefit, arguing that cameras provide another way to watch school-zone traffic when an officer cannot be stationed at every location.
HB 651 reflects both sides of that debate. Rather than eliminating the programs, lawmakers kept them in place but added tighter limits on how they can operate. Against that backdrop, America’s School Transportation & School-Zone Risk Index examines 10 years of fatal crash data instead of relying on the number of citations or cameras in any one community.
States With the Highest Measured Risk
Delaware’s score was rescaled to 100 as the highest in the comparison. Its position was driven in large part by its population-adjusted rate of pedestrian involvement in fatal school-zone crashes. Indiana ranked second and showed elevated risk across more than one component, including the highest rate of vehicles involved in fatal crashes where a school-zone sign or device was recorded.
Small jurisdictions appear several times near the top. A score of 100 does not mean a Delaware resident faces a 100% risk, nor does it establish the probability of a crash. Population-adjusted rates can change sharply in smaller jurisdictions, so the underlying counts and component rates matter alongside the final score.
States With the Lowest Measured Risk
Georgia ranked 13th out of 51 jurisdictions, with a risk score of 26.6. Over the decade analyzed, the state recorded 39 school-bus vehicle involvements in fatal crashes and 15 pedestrian involvements in fatal school-zone crashes. Georgia also had a tracked license-plate-reader density of approximately 69.8 cameras per 100,000 residents, compared with a national average of 37.2. These are general LPR cameras; however, not a count of school-zone speed cameras.
The Danger Isn’t Necessarily Inside the School Bus
For children riding inside a school bus, fatal crashes are relatively uncommon. NHTSA data shows that children in school transportation vehicles account for less than 1% of all traffic deaths. But the trip to and from school involves more than the time spent on the bus. School-transportation-related crash data also captures pedestrians, bicyclists, and occupants of other vehicles, bringing in risks that occur around the bus and along the route.
From 2015 through 2024, 962 fatal school-transportation-related crashes killed 1,069 people of all ages, or an average of 107 people per year. Seventy percent of those who died were occupants of other vehicles. Pedestrians accounted for 15%, while drivers and passengers in school transportation vehicles accounted for 11%.
The difference is also visible when the data is limited to children 18 and younger. Among 204 school-age children killed in these crashes, 78 were in other vehicles, and 77 were pedestrians. Thirty-nine were occupants of school transportation vehicles. The remaining children were seven pedalcyclists and three other nonoccupants. In other words, nearly twice as many child pedestrians died as children riding in school transportation vehicles.
The pedestrian deaths were concentrated among younger children. More than half involved children between the ages of 5 and 10, who may be harder for drivers to see and are often still learning how to judge the speed and distance of approaching traffic. Once the bus doors open, their safety also depends on nearby motorists slowing down and obeying the stop arm.
The index’s school-zone pedestrian component reinforces that point. Delaware recorded the highest average annual population-adjusted rate, at approximately 1.31 pedestrian involvements in fatal school-zone crashes per 1 million residents. The District of Columbia, followed at 0.58. Connecticut, Wyoming, and Pennsylvania each recorded rates between approximately 0.35 and 0.42.
Population-adjusted rates are useful for comparing states of very different sizes, but they don’t tell the whole story. California, for example, had 80 pedestrian involvements in fatal school-zone crashes from 2015 through 2024, more than any other state. Pennsylvania and New York followed with 45 apiece. Once population was factored in, however, California’s average annual rate fell to about 0.20 per 1 million residents.
Georgia’s decade-long totals included 15 pedestrians and two pedalcyclists. On an annual, population-adjusted basis, that worked out to roughly 0.14 pedestrian involvements and 0.02 pedalcyclist involvements per 1 million residents. Neither rate was high enough to put Georgia in the top 10 for those portions of the index.
The safety of children riding inside school buses is only one piece of the issue. Students are also exposed while walking to a stop, crossing the road, or making the short trip between the bus and the school entrance. The findings suggest that those few minutes outside the bus deserve just as much attention as the ride itself.
The Risk Beyond the School Gates: Bus Stops, Crossings and Roadside Exposure
Many children getting on or off a school bus aren’t doing so at a marked intersection, where features such as traffic signals, crosswalks, or crossing guards may be present. The fatality data reflects that difference. From 2015 through 2024, 66% of school-age pedestrian deaths in school-transportation-related crashes happened somewhere other than an intersection. Intersections accounted for 27%, with the remaining cases occurring at locations that could not be determined.
That finding matters because a bus stop can require a child to cross a two-lane road, walk along a shoulder, or wait where there is no sidewalk. Even when the bus driver follows protocol, a student may still be exposed to traffic approaching from another direction. NHTSA’s parent guidance identifies waiting, street crossing, boarding, and exiting as crucial stages of a child’s bus trip.
Which jurisdictions stood out depended on the type of road user being measured. Delaware had the highest pedestrian rate, followed by the District of Columbia, Connecticut, Wyoming, and Pennsylvania. The District of Columbia led the pedalcyclist portion of the index at approximately 0.29 involvements per 1 million residents each year. Oregon’s rate was 0.071, and Wisconsin’s was 0.051. Pedalcyclist incidents were uncommon enough that even one additional case could noticeably shift a smaller jurisdiction’s rate.
The picture changed again when the analysis turned to vehicles involved in fatal crashes near a school-zone sign or traffic-control device. Indiana led that category with 40 involvements over 10 years, equivalent to an average annual rate of 0.589 per 1 million residents. Kentucky ranked second at 0.444, followed by Alaska at 0.410.
The state-by-state results don’t follow a neat pattern. Indiana finished second overall after ranking first for vehicle involvement and eighth for pedestrians. Arkansas, meanwhile, was fourth in the vehicle category but only 42nd in the pedestrian measure. North Dakota also landed near the top for vehicles, ranking fifth, yet none of its fatal school-zone crashes involved a pedestrian. In other words, states can arrive at a similar overall ranking for very different reasons. In some places, the numbers point more toward traffic within school zones; in others, pedestrian involvement plays a much bigger part.
Dangerous Drivers Around School Buses and School Zones
Every state requires motorists to stop for a school bus displaying its flashing lights and extended stop arm, although the details can vary by roadway. The rule is widely known. Violations remain remarkably common.
In the 2026 National Association of State Directors of Pupil Transportation Services survey, 101,334 bus drivers in 39 states and the District of Columbia reported 56,024 illegal passings in a single day during the 2025–26 school year. After adjusting for national participation, the survey estimated more than 213,800 violations on a typical school day. Across a 180-day school year, that would amount to more than 38.4 million illegal passings.
Illegal passing appears to be happening less often than it was a few years ago, although the numbers remain high. An estimated 38.4 million violations occurred during the latest school year. That is about 2.3% fewer than the 39.3 million estimated the year before and a larger drop from the 45.2 million reported for 2023–24. Still, 38.4 million violations translate to more than 213,800 instances on an average school day. So while the trend has improved, drivers passing stopped buses remain a regular concern for children boarding and leaving them.
One part of the survey moved in the opposite direction. Although drivers usually pass on the left, 3.45% of the 2026 violations occurred on the bus’s right side. That was the highest percentage in the survey’s history. Because students generally board and exit on the right, those violations bring vehicles into the same space that children are expected to use.
Reports also differed considerably from one participating state to another. The survey worked out to an average of roughly 0.55 illegal passings per bus driver. Alabama reported 5.3 per driver, followed by Arkansas at 2.0 and Arizona at 1.4. California and Colorado each reported 1.2. Participation levels and reporting practices were not identical across states, so these results offer a snapshot rather than a definitive ranking.
Passing a stopped bus isn’t the only driver behavior reflected in the data. Between 2015 and 2024, speeding was involved in 47 school-zone fatalities included in the index. Ten occurred in Indiana, more than in any other state. Texas had seven, and Florida had four, while Alaska, Arkansas, Illinois, and Kentucky each had three.
School transportation vehicles themselves can also pose a danger when a child is in the roadway. Of the 77 school-age pedestrians killed in school-transportation-related crashes during the decade, 44 were struck by a school bus or another vehicle functioning as a school bus. Thirteen were struck while a school bus was going straight, 10 while one was starting in the road, seven during a right turn, and eight during a left turn.
Safe driving around buses is therefore not solely the responsibility of passing motorists. Visibility, careful maneuvering, stop placement, and consistent procedures all play a role.
Cameras, Crossing Guards, and the Changing Approach to School-Zone Safety
There is no single protective measure in place at every American school. According to the National Center for Education Statistics, 83% of public schools reported having a designated school zone immediately around the campus. Only 41% reported crossing guards on the surrounding streets.
Crossing guards were much more common at some schools than others. Just over half of elementary schools, 51%, reported having one, compared with only 19% of high and secondary schools. Location made a difference as well. About half of suburban schools had crossing guards, but that dropped to 21% among rural schools. That puts rural coverage at less than half the suburban level and well below the national average.
The same federal survey found that 79% of public schools had sidewalks on at least some surrounding streets. Thirty-five percent reported traffic-calming features such as speed bumps, and 19% had bike lanes. More than one-third of school leaders, 38%, moderately or strongly agreed that nearby traffic patterns threatened students’ physical safety while commuting.
Schools do not all have the same tools available to manage traffic. At some campuses, the main protection may be a posted school-zone speed limit. Elsewhere, drivers may also encounter a crossing guard, speed camera, sidewalk, or changes to the road itself. Local officials have to work with the streets already surrounding the school, the way students arrive and leave, and whatever funding or staff the community can provide.
As Georgia weighs the future of camera enforcement near schools, a recent state study offers some insight into how the cameras may be affecting driver behavior. The 2026 evaluation, sponsored by the Georgia Department of Transportation, looked at school zones with automated cameras and compared them with locations that did not use the technology. Speeding-related crashes were 35% lower at camera-equipped schools on the state highway system and 54% lower at off-system schools. The study also recorded a 36% reduction in drivers going more than 10 mph above the posted school-zone limit at locations with cameras.
The results give communities a reason to consider cameras as part of their approach to speeding. They do not answer every criticism of how the programs have been run. Whether cameras reduce dangerous driving is one question; whether tickets are accurate, signs are clear, enforcement hours make sense, and drivers have a fair opportunity to challenge a citation are separate ones. HB 651 attempts to address the latter without taking the former option away.
The LPRMaps data needs some context. Its database included roughly 120,000 license-plate readers across 49 states, about 7,480 of them in Georgia, but those figures are not a tally of school-zone speed cameras. Camera density played only a small role in the index, with the per-capita figure able to increase a jurisdiction’s base score by a maximum of 10%. Most of the ranking still came from fatal crash data. And because the LPRMaps numbers cover plate readers more broadly, they cannot tell us whether drivers slowed down near any individual school.
The Bus Ride Is Only One Part of the Trip
School buses generally provide children with a safe ride, yet much of the risk covered by this study developed beyond the bus doors. During the 10 years analyzed, the number of school-age pedestrians killed in school-transportation-related crashes was nearly double the number of children who died while riding in school transportation vehicles. About two-thirds of the pedestrian deaths happened away from intersections. Drivers also passed stopped buses an estimated 38.4 million times during the most recent school year, repeatedly creating situations in which a child could enter the path of a moving vehicle.
Being near the top of the list doesn’t suggest that conditions are the same outside every school in a state. Population size matters, for one thing. In smaller jurisdictions, a few additional deaths can move a per-capita rate quite a bit. There also isn’t one issue behind every state’s placement. Pedestrian fatalities may account for more of the score in some places, while crashes near designated school zones may stand out elsewhere. The ranking makes more sense when those individual figures, along with the number of incidents behind them, are considered on their own.
That context is especially relevant in Georgia as communities prepare to make more of their own decisions about camera enforcement. Cameras may reduce speeding, but they cannot replace clear bus-stop procedures, safe places to cross, attentive drivers, or streets designed with children in mind. The full trip, from the front door to the bus stop and through the school entrance, has to be part of the safety conversation.
When School-Zone Safety Measures Fall Short
The Millar Law Firm represents people injured in pedestrian, bicycle, and motor vehicle crashes throughout Georgia. When unsafe driving near a school results in a serious injury, speaking with an Atlanta personal injury lawyer can help an injured person or family better understand the legal questions that may follow. Better data can show communities where safeguards are thin, but those protections matter most when they prevent another family from experiencing the consequences behind the numbers.
Methodology
The Millar Law Firm created America’s School Transportation & School-Zone Risk Index using 2015–2024 records from NHTSA’s Fatality Analysis Reporting System. All 50 states and the District of Columbia were compared across four components:
- School-bus vehicles involved in fatal crashes: 25% of the base score
- Vehicles involved in fatal crashes where a school-zone sign or device was recorded: 25%
- Pedestrians involved in fatal crashes in school zones: 35%
- Pedalcyclists involved in fatal crashes in school zones: 15%
Each 10-year count was annualized and divided by the jurisdiction’s approximate population to produce a rate per 1 million residents. The rates were min-max normalized from zero to 100 and then combined according to their assigned weights.
Tracked LPR camera density from LPRMaps was reverse-normalized and used as a camera-gap modifier. Low tracked-camera density could increase a jurisdiction’s NHTSA base score by no more than 10%. It could not create risk when the base score was zero. The adjusted results were then rescaled so the highest jurisdiction received a final score of 100.
Higher scores indicate greater measured relative risk within this comparison; they are not crash probabilities. NHTSA exports count vehicles or people involved in fatal crashes and do not always represent unique crashes or fatalities. The components also rely on related but different FARS classifications.
LPRMaps tracks license-plate readers rather than school-zone speed cameras, so the modifier is not a direct safety measure. Approximate population was derived from LPRMaps’ rounded camera-density figures. Small jurisdictions can produce volatile per-capita rates; raw counts and component rates should be considered with the rankings. Georgia city-level LPR counts and county school-bus records use different geographies and were not combined.
