A week after a bus crash killed an 11-year-old student, the Ohio governor created a group to evaluate whether school buses need better safety.
Heather Wisen is the transportation coordinator for Mentor Public Schools, but her true joy comes from behind the wheel.
"I actually love driving buses because I love being around the kids," said Wisen.
Before moving up, she drove buses for seven years and now, because of the bus driver shortage, she's back making sure kids get to school with no problems; safety is always on her mind.
"You know, being a bus driver, safety is huge. You have to drive with your head on a swivel, always watching traffic around you," said Wisen.
Safety isn't just her priority; it's Gov. Mike DeWine's, too. At Mentor schools, the governor toured the school bus inspection process with the Ohio State Highway Patrol before announcing the Ohio School Bus Safety Working Group would evaluate the safety of buses.
"We go into this with no preconceptions. The group will look at absolutely every aspect of this, from the construction of the buses to the maintenance to the inspections," said DeWine.
The group will meet at least five times yearly and develop a report including recommendations for the school bus.
This comes after an 11-year-old student was killed in a bus crash in Clark County last week.
"The question that everyone has been asking me the last week is there anything else that we can do to make our buses safer?" said Governor Dewine.
The Ohio State Highway Patrol currently inspects 19,200 school buses twice a year.
"Our inspectors look at 182 points of inspection. So we're looking at every part and piece to make sure that it meets the construction standard for which it was originally designed," said Lt. Aaron Reimer, staff lieutenant, OSHP.
If they pass, you'll see a sticker on the side of the bus, but the task force will ask: Is there more that can be done?
Heather says the buses are safe, but there's always room for improvement.
"My hope is that we see what the task force comes up with and look at the pros and cons and be able to give parents a more informed decision or a more informed answer. When they asked us, why do we or why don't we have certain features on the buses?" Wisen said.
The governor said that seat belts and staffing could be among the things discussed by the working group; they expect a report by December.
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