Should Ontario’s school buses be equipped with seatbelts?

Transport Canada thinks so.

According to an agency recommendation, all school buses should be equipped with the restraints, which should be used for any kids aged 4½ and under, as well as any kids weighing 18 kilograms or less.

Since 2007, all school buses have been required to be built with hooks for restraint systems, but the systems themselves remain optional.

The federal government has left it up to individual provinces and territories to regulate the use of seatbelts on school buses, and Ontario – like most provinces – has opted not to introduce them.

Asked about the issue on Tuesday, Education Minister Liz Sandals pointed to the safety record of buses as they currently operate.

“School buses have an extraordinary record in terms of safety,” she said.

“The Interior design of school buses has been constantly improved based on research to make sure that the interior is as safe as possible for children.”

Student Transportation Services of Waterloo Region looks after the bus-based transportation of about 30,000 public and Catholic board students every day.

Benoit Bourgault, the organization’s general manager, says local buses see about five collisions for every million kilometres driven – and those generally involve smaller vehicles running into stopped buses.

“Most of the time they’re minor in nature,” he says.

Bourgault says he doesn’t see an immediate need for seatbelts either – as from what he sees, students are in the most danger when they’re not in their seats.

“Children are safe inside the bus. There’s a lot of protection – the size of the vehicle and the speed they travel provide for a lot of safety,” he tells CTV News.

“Outside the bus is a different story.”

Bourgault also questions who would be given the responsibility of fastening the seatbelts, as parents are not allowed on buses.

Saba Shahmalak, who has three kids taking buses to school this year after recently moving to Waterloo Region, says she’d like to see seatbelts used.

“Anytime you put them on the road they’re at risk, but you want to keep them as safe as you can,” she says.