Hi, I have been driving school bus for eleven years now. I do have a problem with the seats and the leg room in the buses. I am a 6 ft tall driver, and I have long legs.

Most of the buses I have driven where flat fronts or transit style that did not take into account the height of the driver. I made due for years until my knees couldn't take the pressure of the bad ergonomics. I have since given up the transits, and my employer has moved the seat back 5 inches in a conventional bus for me, and now no knee pain. But of course the seat is still a killer. I use a tempurpedic back pad for behind my back to help aleviate the back pain I do get.

Manufacturers should take into account leg length and height of bus drivers. Because even the newer buses are painful to me.\

I hope this helps.

Sincerely
Sheryl E.

All buses should have air conditioning. Or should I say- All buses should have working air conditioning. Nothing is worse IMO than sitting on a vinyl bus seat in 110 plus degree heat for several hours. All buses have heaters, why no A/C?

You don't have to go so far as translating yout night course experience to school transportation in the driver compartment. Many operations schedule 3.5 hours and beyond for driver training - many with classroom days of 8 instructional hours. Often this experience is endured on metal folding chairs in rooms without air conditioning. And remember - you wanted to take that course, these drivers are there because they "have to."

Other operations are highly thoughtful about creature comforts, instruction session length, quality and variety of instructional styles and formats, and reasonable class size so that learning is maximized. Needless to say these operations not only have well-trained employees, they also have better perfomance, lower turnover, actively involved employees.

Maybe they're on to something.

On the flip side of the coin,I am barely 5 Ft.
The bus certainly doesn't fit me! I always thought they were made for 6 ft. people. The worst is the curve in the seat back. I like to sit upright but then my head is pushed forward
and down somewhat.It really is "a pain in the neck"

Most drivers understand this also due to the mandated basic course required in NY State as per 19-A class's given About 4 Saturday's 8 hours each day,but you can move back from a desk or table not so in many busses. But some drivers are shall we say larger than others but not always tall and some busses have tilt steering wheels, unfortunatly the seats don't go back far enough to be comfortable and the steering wheel is in your lap or stomach.

as far as classes "The mind cannot absorb what the butt cannot endure"

As some bus manufacturers also make high-end coaches (Blue Bird comes to mind)it should be relatively easy for manufacturers to have comfortable, ergonomically correct seats for drivers. As new busses aren't cheap, a couple thousand to add AC and a comfortable drivers seat isn't that much of an economic impact over the expected 10+ year life span.

Heck, when I started driving, blue bird was using a low back seat with a lap belt. The seat cushions were flat and offered no support at all. Add the lack of AC or tinted windows (and the wonderful 5 speed stick with a heavy clutch pedal) and you were really beat at the end of the day.

Though there is still a long way to go until most school busses are "comfortable" they are a far cry better than what we had back when I was a young man.

Cheers,
Scott

Since drivers come in all shapes and sizes I don't think it is possible for a bus to "fit" everyone. In our fleet there isn't anything that I can't drive but some are down right painful. The bus I'll have in the fall is very comfortable for me. My only complaint is that I can't adjust the right mirrors without help or a ladder because the toe step is simply too high. The newer buses with multi-position seats, tilt steering wheels and adjustable shoulder straps are heaven compared to some of the buses I started on.

Ted's comment about comfort during training are right on.

The new Thomas Safety Liners C-2 feels really confined in the drivers ares. The seat bottom is the most uncomfortable of all. Air conditioners would be very nice when the temperature outside is 109 degees. Schools are air conditioned these days. Why should'nt the school busses be air conditioned also?

Scott's comment about the cost being absorbed over the life of the bus is "right on". We go a step further and think about the time that isn't lost by the driver being able to stay on the job due to his having an air-ride seat, adjustable lumbar supports, automatic tranny and now we are ordering electric or air operated doors to aid the drivers. You spread the costs over the 12+ years we have the units, calculate the impact of drivers being able to continue working on your Workers' Comp premium, and the added features are an incredible bargain! That isn't even taking into account the driver moral generated by showing we are thinking of their comfort. We include driver representatives in our meetings when we talk about bus specs as well.

I have to agree with Kevin O. I can't understand why these seats don't fit the guy or gal on the plus size. It is next to impossible to drive safely when the steering wheel is pushing into your belly. I have been in Transportation for 23 years. Seems to me that instead of the manufactures "giving us more room" they are taking it away.

Ergonomics are important indeed and making the driver comfortable in the drivers compartment is one of my priorities in my job. In 2000 we started purchasing power doors on all of our school buses this relieves stress on the shoulders, arms and back. We also purchase the best drivers seat available with all of the available adjustments as well as tilting and telescoping steering columns. An unnecessary or extravagant expense some might say so but I know that by making the drivers job easier and more comfortable makes my job easier. I receive less complaints, drivers are more apt to be friendly to passengers and parents. Sick days are also reduced.

I have added air ride to conventional buses that run on wash crossed dirt roads. The drivers are now walking upright when they get off a bus that's pounded down rural roads for 2 hours! A seat is much cheaper than a workers comp claim, and the benefit of having a happy driver is worth much more than that!

Not to mention that a comfortable driver is a safer driver and therefore reducing the possibility of accidents and incidents. I only wish that more company owners and school district Boards of Education would see the light

I have found that a good seat could mean the difference between a good trip and a painful leg. It is great that new buses are coming with adjudtable seats and tilted steering wheels. I also appreciate the right side arm rest which keeps me from sliding in the seat and helps my arm in the process. I hope that one day in my lifetime that more buses will come with air-conditioning. This will help with the climate of students and drivers both physically and emotionally.

I stand at 5'3", certainly not the tallest where I drive, but the not the shortest either. The new Internationals we've been getting the past couple of years have been comfortable-for me that means the seat the moves forward, that is, closer to the gas pedal and the steering wheel is adjustable. There are over 60 buses in our fleet and there are several vehicles where I reach the accelerator with my toes; the brake is not a problem. I believe these buses are Freightliners. For long runs, several hours of continous driving, or several days of using these buses can cause a strain on my right leg from where I sit to the lower length of my thigh. The seats, the steering wheel, the electronic doors, and power side view mirrors do make a world of difference, but may I add that daily exercise can make a great difference, too. Exercises as simple as stretching that focus on the butt, the back of the upper and lower thighs and low back, done daily, can help tremendously. A combination of good ergonomics and exercise have made a difference for me, but if I have to drive a bus (I am a sub driver) where my leg is hyperextended for a long time exercise, then, becomes extremely important.

I don't normally have any problem with the seats but, as Steve suggests, the seat belt shoulder harness in most busses cannot be adjested for people with short trunks like me. The lowest setting on the shoulder best in most busses still puts the belt across my neck.It seems to me that htis could be addressed by offering a lower adjustment on the shoulder belt.

I have driven a school bus for twenty-five years and feel that an "air seat", like in tractor trailers, would be the best seat for the school bus. Electric doors and side mirrors are but not s important as the seat. Over the course of my years driving I developed a bad back and tendanitis and arthritis in my wrists. On 8/13/06 I fractured two vertabre in my lower back (at home between runs for summer school driving)and although my injury was not on the bus, it certainly contributed to the weakening in my back. As a result of my injury, I am unable to pass the physical performaance test and have had to retire from a job I loved. I am now on disibility and unable to work at all. I tell this story because I don't want others to weaken their backs because of "bad or uncomfortable bus seats"....! I suggest that school bus drivers everywhere talk to their Supervisor's about the importance of a comfortable seat in ALL buses and keep asking until something changes! I miss my job and the students I know and love, I only wish I had driven an automatic and had a comfortable seat to sit in earlier in my career! Thanks for listening.......

Our fleet is comprised of buses ranging in age from brand new to up to 12 years old. We have many flat nose buses, Amtram and Thomas primarily, with a few older Blue Birds still mixed in, although most of them were retired this year. My main bus is a 99 Amtram with a seat that doesn't quite go back far enough for my long legs and I do not like having to climb over the engine compartment to get in and out of the driver's seat. This is not only uncomfortable, but could even be dangerous in a case where you might want to bolt out of there quickly. It's my privilege to use a newer International CE 300 on occasion. In this conventional bus I don't have the engine compartment problem and the seat goes way back to accommodate my long legs. It also has convenient controls in the steering wheel for the door and 8-way flasher system. Both buses I drive are equipped with air ride seats which give a comfortable ride. The seat belt tends to be somewhat uncomfortable in the Amtran, but OK in the CE300. I tend to be partial to Internationals, having a long history with them, but I do think the driver's compartment on the CE300 is very well designed, quite comfortable, and an improvement over the older Amtran. I also like it better than the FS65 Freightliner, although they're pretty nice. Supposedly some new Freightliner C2s are coming our way but I haven't driven them yet. I'm sure with all the emphasis on ergonomics these days, school bus manufacturers will continue to improve their product. As it stands right now, I like a conventional bus over a flat nose and the International CE300 gets my vote for overall comfort, performance and good looks. I'd be quite happy to have one assigned to me permanently in the near future.

Geoff Bridgman, Driver
Pocono Mountain School District West
Mt. Pocono, PA

Drivers seats in newer buses do not go back far away from steering wheel or pedals. Also which someone could fix all the blind spots - especially with the new mirrors.

Speaking of blind spots, I'm surprised that the FS65 Freightliner has a split windshield and wipers that hang down from the top, partially obscuring the driver's view. This has been corrected in the new models, but there's still a lot of FS65s out there and will be for a long time. I've just read all the comments so far and noticed several people have rated the Internationals over the Freightliners, even the new Saf-T-Liners, for comfort and good ergonomics. Last year we purchased several FS65 Freightliners. I asked our person in charge of bus purchases why we didn't buy Internationals. "Freightliner came in the lowest bid," was his reply. It seems Freightliner makes a less expensive bus and truck. A friend who sells for the local Peterbilt dealer loses sales to Freightliner on occasion because of cost. I can see the difference in quality between the Freightliners and the Internationals: Materials of construction, fit and finish, quality of the paint job and ergonomics of the driver's compartment. To me, you only get what you pay for. International still gets my vote.

Geoff Bridgman
Pocono Mountain School District West
Mt. Pocono, PA

The course of my years driving I developed a bad back and tendanitis and arthritis in my wrists. On 8/13/06 I fractured two vertabre in my lower back (at home between runs for summer school driving)and although my injury was not on the bus, it certainly contributed to the weakening in my back. As a result of my injury, I am unable to pass the physical performaance test and have had to retire from a job I loved. I am now on disibility and unable to work at all. I tell this story because I don't want others to weaken their backs because of "bad or uncomfortable bus seats...
Thanks...

Have any of you had the problem of the seat bottoming out? If so please explain.

I have driven a bus since 1989. I learned on a standard shift... The busses today t was more comfortable than then. I also have tendonitus in the right shoulder and arm. Which is greatly aggravated by the park brake. I push and pull that thing a hundred times a day . Strtching my arm to reach it. The pressure it puts on my arm is horrible. But like any other job it has its risks. Where ever you work something is going to hurt you. At least when you work for the school system you get great benefits.