Every week, fifty children are backed over by motor vehicles in the United States.  Forty-eight children end up in emergency rooms and two die as a result of these tragedies, which are referred to as backovers.  More than seventy percent of those children are struck by a driver who is related to them, often a parent.  That equates to 41% of the non-traffic vehicular deaths for kids aged fourteen and younger.  It’s preventable.  And with the pervasiveness of larger vehicles, it is essential people understand the hazards and enact measures to prevent this growing phenomenon.  There are two major contributing factors: young children, who have virtually no concept of danger, and vehicle blind zones.  Fortunately, there are numerous precautions that can be taken to prevent these accidents.

Children are at risk for a number of reasons, including their height and inability to comprehend the dangers vehicles present.  Toddlers 12-23 months-old represent 70% of the victims.  They don’t anticipate the movement of the car and are not cognizant of pseudo-boundaries like sidewalks, steps, and blind zones.Kids, especially toddlers, are often impulsive and victim of what Janette Fennell, founder KidsAndCars.org safety advocacy group, calls the “bye-bye syndrome.”  She notes, “Children often don’t want to be left behind when a beloved relative is leaving; they sneak out and put themselves in a dangerous position behind the vehicle where they can’t be seen.”

All vehicles have blind zones in the front, back, sides and corners.  These areas are not visible to drivers, even with the proper use of their mirrors and when they turn around to look.  As vehicles have grown longer, higher and larger, the blind zones have grown as well, but drivers underestimate the size of these zones.  Most vehicles have a blind zone behind them seven to eight feet wide, and 20-30 feet long; but a pickup’s blind zone can be up to 50’ behind it.  And the shorter the driver is, the larger the blind zone.   Steep inclines also extend blind zones.  In front of a vehicle, the average blind zone is smaller, but unexpectedly dangerous, typically extending six to eight feet.  From 2004 to 2008, frontovers represented 22.5% of non-traffic vehicular fatalities for children younger than 14 years-old, and over the past two years, frontovers have increased dramatically. Astonishingly, as of July, backovers and frontovers are taking place at an equal pace so far in 2010.

Backovers are preventable accidents.  Awareness is key.  And fortunately, there are many ways to reduce blind zones and avert these accidents.  Vehicles can be purchased or retrofit with backup warning devises to reduce or eliminate their blind zones.  Rear sensor systems can alert drivers to obstacles or people in their blind zones with an audio warning.  Rear view camera systems show drivers what’s behind them via an in-car monitor.  As a result of the Cameron Gulbransen Kids Transportation Safety Act, the Federal government is in the process of developing and implementing a rear visibility standard for all motor vehicles.  

But safety does not have to come at a price.  Janette Fennell offers the following safety tips to prevent backovers and frontovers:

• Walk around and behind a vehicle prior to moving it.
• Know where your kids are. Make children move away from your vehicle to a place where they are in full view before moving the car, and ensure that another adult is properly supervising children before moving your vehicle.
• Teach children that parked vehicles might move. Let them know that they can see the vehicle, but the driver might not be able to see them.
• Consider installing cross view mirrors, audible collision detectors, a rear-view video camera and/or some type of back up detection device.
• Measure the size of your blind zone (area) behind the vehicle(s) you drive.
• Be aware that steep inclines and large SUV’s, vans and trucks add to the difficulty of seeing behind a vehicle.
• Consider retrofitting your vehicle(s) with rear sensor system safety technology if you do not have it.  There are cost-effective and simple-to-install kits available.  When you purchase a new car, be sure to ask for rear sensor system safety technology.
• Always set the emergency brake, and teach your children to never play in, around or behind a vehicle.
• Keep toys and other sports equipment off the driveway.
• Homeowners should trim landscaping around the driveway to ensure they can see the sidewalk, street and pedestrians clearly when backing out of their driveways. Pedestrians also need to be able to see a vehicle pulling out of the driveway.
• Never leave children alone in or around cars; not even for a minute.
• Keep vehicles locked at all times; even in the garage or driveway.
• Keys and/or remote openers should never be left within reach of children.
• Make sure all child passengers have left the car after it is parked, and be sure to hold children’s hands when leaving the vehicle.
• Be especially careful about keeping children safe in and around cars during busy times, schedule changes and periods of crisis or holidays.
• Advise children of the 10’ blind zone around bus perimeters and that they should not play or push in line at the bus stop especially as a bus approaches.  They should never retrieve an article dropped in front of a bus without getting a signal from the driver that it is okay to do so.
• For more information, visit www.KidsandCars.org.

School Transportation – Some Surprising Statistics

Nearly 50 million students headed off to approximately 99,000 public elementary and secondary schools for the fall term according to IES National Center for Education Statistics.  Though children are also transported via car, train and bike, the National Highway Traffic and Safety Administration reports that every year, approximately 475,000 public school buses travel about 4.3 billion miles to transport 25 million children to and from school and school-related activities.   Among many adults, the perception is that children are safer traveling to and from school in the family car, primarily because they can use seat belts.  But statistics disprove that theory.  According to the National Safety Council, the national school bus accident rate is 0.01 per 100 million miles traveled, compared to 0.04 for trains, 0.06 for commercial aviation and 0.96 for other passenger vehicles.  Therefore, the federal government considers school buses to be about nine times safer that other passenger vehicles during the normal school commute.

Among bus-related child fatalities, frontovers are the number one cause of death. Vehicle and bus safety discussions typically focus on car seats and the need for seat belts on buses. But it’s a fact that more children are being killed outside of a bus than killed inside a bus because the large danger zones around buses which make it impossible for the driver to see small children. Children mistakenly believe that if they can see the bus, the bus driver can see them.  However, there is approximately a 10’ blind zone in front of school buses that most children and parents may not be aware of.  And drivers don’t realize that the blind zones around their larger passenger vehicles can be as large as the danger zones associated with buses.

Bus stops, designated drop-off locations at schools, and school parking lots are the most dangerous areas where children and parents need to be extra vigilant in regards to frontovers and backovers. Loading and unloading areas are a danger zone for children whether they are being transported by a bus, passenger vehicle, biking or even walking.

– Sonja Butler is vice-president of KidsandCars.org.