If it only has a lap belt?
I think 5 for me.....
If it only has a lap belt?
I think 5 for me.....
49 votes
blogger / grapefruit / 4836 posts
Probably Kindergarten. I think on daycare busses they have to be in a booster until they are 8 but I could be wrong. Maybe that was just in our van?
eggplant / 11408 posts
Well, she's ridden on a bus without a belt at all before, and that was when she was just a few months old. I said 3-4.
persimmon / 1379 posts
Oh I would be fine at an early age. My 5 year old (almost 6) has been riding a school bus for a whole year without a belt-they are not standard around these parts.
nectarine / 2180 posts
Do school busses have lap belts these days? If we're not in walking distance of her elementary school, I would have DD ride the bus to kindergarten.
grapefruit / 4278 posts
E takes field trips with daycare on a regular school bus now at 3... I'm not crazy about it but I'm not going to keep him from going on the field trip.
pomegranate / 3858 posts
LO (almost 3) is going on a field trip with preschool tomorrow on a bus with no belts. I'm not happy about it. DH is going along to help which makes me feel better, but I'll be submitting some safety info for future trips. They should be in harnesses at that age. School bus safety features don't work till 5ish.
blogger / wonderful cherry / 21616 posts
4-5? I never thought about it! I guess kindergarten? It's not that I wouldn't be fine with it now though.
grapefruit / 4321 posts
Not before Kindergarten. I would not be comfortable with preschool field trips on a bus without seat belts.
GOLD / wonderful coffee bean / 18478 posts
@Pancakes: our school bus has lap belts
DD just started kinder and rides the bus to school. She is 5.
hostess / papaya / 10219 posts
I can't answer because im probably never going to feel comfortable. I'm a teacher and I see the mess that goes on in them and the drivers come and go because frankly it's a hard job because the kids are nutso unsupervised and none of them wear the seat belts. When I was a kid I was on a bus that was in an accident. Scarred me for life. I hate school busses.
grapefruit / 4903 posts
We live too close for the kids to be bussed, but I'd have sent her in kindergarten.
GOLD / wonderful pomegranate / 28905 posts
@kiddosc: @tinyperson: @Truth Bombs: my 3.5 year old started field trips this year. I made sure to ask beforehand but the buses they use are equipped to install car seats. I'm not 100% sure what I would've done if the buses didn't allow car seats to be installed or had 5 point harnesses. But I would lean towards keeping her home that day or sending her in late, after they left.
She's been on 2 so far and each time we left her car seat at daycare. I just don't understand if there are buses equipped to install car seats OR buses that have 5 point harnesses available, why wouldn't you?
GOLD / wonderful apricot / 22276 posts
She rode a bus for her field trip. 2-4 year olds. She's 3, no seat belts. I was fine with it.
GOLD / wonderful pomegranate / 28905 posts
@Bao: the 2 year olds were not in car seats or harnesses???
GOLD / wonderful pomegranate / 28905 posts
So, I'm curious. Those who are comfortable before 5/6. What's your feelings on car seats/boosters/FF?
pomegranate / 3658 posts
My LO is 6 months old and I take her on a city bus in the Lillebaby all the time. I have a friend who carries her DD in the Ergo on the city bus every day to daycare. No issue.
[ETA] Not sure what you mean about my feelings about carseats/boosters/FF?
wonderful pear / 26210 posts
I am not comfortable with the school bus for a number of reason, but primarily I don't know enough about how compartmentalization works and why that makes busses safe without belts. I think it has to go with the height of the seat back, but I would love more information and I think this is why car seats in cars and busses can't really be compared. I am also not a fan of school busses on highways, especially without aides.
I view city busses differently, but then again, I have only used them for local trips in town when we lived abroad, never long distance, although, we had also gone on trips using trains, also unrestrained.
grapefruit / 4400 posts
@regberadaisy: busses are built much differently than consumer cars. The way the seats are spaced, how high the passengers sit, and the weight of the bus makes it relatively safe and therefore seat belts aren't required.
If my 3 year old had to take a bus for a field trip, I would be fine with it. I also rear faced her until she was 3, will keep her in her forward-facing convertible until she reaches the limit, and keep her in a booster and in the backseat until she's old enough to be safe in the front seat without one. I feel like those two issues have nothing to do with each other.
pomegranate / 3706 posts
Maybe it's because I never rode the bus, but I wouldn't feel comfortable until at least 1st grade.
persimmon / 1328 posts
I don't know if school buses are different, but I have taken LO on a normal bus all the time since he was born. He's been on it in a carrier, in a pushchair, and just loose sitting on the seat. I don't have any other choice to get around - but it's the city so I guess these buses are rarely topping 15mph.
grapefruit / 4278 posts
@regberadaisy: They ride a regular school bus that isn't equipped with belts of any kind. The daycare has a van that would allow carseats to be installed, but it wouldn't fit enough kids to go on the field trip. I'm normally a stickler for carseat rules. He rode RF in my car until about a month ago (turned 3 in May) and will stay in a 5 point harness as long as I can keep him in one. This was one of those situations that I wasn't quite sure how to handle as a parent. I'm not comfortable with it, but I don't want him to be left out. Ultimately, we decided to let him go.
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