COLLEGE STATION, Texas (KRHD) — College Station Independent School District recently approved adding three-point seat belts to its school buses to meet requirements under a new state law.
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Last year, Texas lawmakers passed Senate Bill 546 during the 89th legislative session, requiring public school buses to be equipped with three-point seat belts by 2029.
While some of the district’s newer buses already have the seat belts, 19 older buses still need to be retrofitted before the deadline. The district says it will have to cover the cost on its own, without help from the state.
"It's about $30,000 a bus to retrofit those buses. So that's about $570,000 that the district would have to spend out of their general budget to do that," College Station ISD Transportation Director, Shannon Calltharp said.
Despite the price tag, district leaders say keeping students safe comes first.
"We always wanna make sure that our kids are safe. We always put that first and foremost," Calltharp said.
"This is one of our new Thomas's, and they are all equipped with three seatbelts per seat, a 3-point seatbelt system," Calltharp said.
For College Station parent Austin Dunson, the added safety can make a real difference. His children ride the bus every single day.
"Safety is always as a parent is always top of mind for me," Austin Dunson said.
"I've got 2 kids in school, and both of them ride the bus in the morning, every day to school,and they ride at home. That's something as a parent that I think gives gives me a lot of comfort," Dunson said.
"I mean, it's always top of mind as a parent is to know like our babies safe," Dunson said.
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