In light of a spike in student deaths in the school bus loading and unloading zone last school year, districts nationwide can obtain a free copy of a safety program that is endorsed by the National Association for Pupil Transportation.

NAPT announced this week a cooperative agreement to make available free of charge the "Danger Zones" program, a 20-minute DVD, trainer's guide and a driver's handout courtesy of The School Bus Safety Company. The program covers how drivers should behave to ensure that the so-called danger zones around the bus, basically the 10- to 20-foot area extending around school buses, are kept clear as well as how to prevent danger zone accidents. The offer is also made available by 247 Security and the non-profit Public School Risk Management Institute.

The School Bus Safety Company's full driver training course is an "NAPT Recommended Product."

“If you take for granted safety in and around the areas immediately outside the bus, you are asking for trouble”, said Mike Martin, executive director of the National Association for Pupil Transportation. “It’s called the ‘danger zone’ for a reason.”

Last month, the Kansas State Department of Education released its 2008-2009 National School Bus Loading and Unloading Zone Survey of all 50 states, which showed 17 student fatalities resulted from being hit by their own school bus or by a motorist who illegally passed the stopped school bus. During the 2007-2008 school year, the national survey uncovered eight student fatalities while loading or unloading the bus.

Ted Finlayson-Schueler, president of school bus training consultant SafetyRules! and the former CEO and owner of the Pupil Transportation Safety Institute, said the "Danger Zones" program is a good stand-alone product.

"It's part of a whole series of DVDs, but you receive one whole program," he said. "If you have that, you have more than had to start with."