School Bus Transportation News at STN Media

15-Passenger Vans

Fifteen-passenger vans include the Chevy Express E3500, Ford Econoline E350, Ford Club Wagon E350, Dodge Ram Wagon B350, Dodge Ram Van E350, GMC Savana G3500 and GMC Express 3500.

National Transportation Safety Board: Report of the April 4, 2002 crash in which a 15-passenger Ford E-350 van, driven by a 27-year-old driver and transporting six children to school, overturned while southbound in the left lane of Interstate 240 in Memphis, Tennessee. The van was owned and operated by a private child care center. The driver and four children sustained fatal injuries

NHTSA Restates Rollover Warning For Users of 15-Passenger Vans Federal (May 26, 2005) -- safety agency issues 3rd warning against large passenger vans. Fatalities from 15-passenger van rollover van crashes have declined 35 percent since advisories began in 2001.

15-passenger Van Safety Hazard Information Background information about the hazards of 15-passenger vans.

Rollover Propensity of 15-Passenger Vans: NHTSA Notes [75 KB] (April 2001) NHTSA research report reviews crash data of 15-passenger vans, measures the Static Stability Factor of several van configurations, and provides a simulation analysis of the handling characteristics of loaded and unloaded 15-passenger vans.

Ford Motor Co. analysis of NHTSA 2001 report "The Rollover Propensity of 15-Passenger vans.

15-Passenger Econoline Vans Are Safe Vehicles: Sept. 2002 statement by Ford about safety of its Econoline 15-passenger van series.

Joan Claybrook's Letter to NHTSA Administrator Runge Regarding 15-Passenger Van Safety Hazards (Nov. 13, 2002)

Dual Rear Wheels: The Fix for 15-Passenger Van Instability
WASHINGTON, D.C. - (Nov. 12, 2002) Public Citizen, a non-profit public interest group, today called on Ford, General Motors and DaimlerChrysler to install dual rear wheels on 15-passenger vans. The vans have a propensity to roll over when loaded with people and cargo. Public Citizen says the retrofit would cost manufacturers approximately $135 per vehicle. The vans are routinely used by churches, universities, airport ground transport companies, day care centers and elder care groups to transport people on field trips, church outings, athletic trips, and occasionally by K-12 schools. The federal government estimates there are half a million such vehicles on the roads today!

Dangerous 15-Passenger Vans Have Fallen Through Regulatory Cracks Nov. 2002. Statement by Joan Claybrook, president of Public Citizen of the Center for Automotive Safety, about the hazards of 15-passenger vans. Public Citizen calls on (1) manufactureers to recall and then retrofit 15-passenger vans with dual-rear wheels, (2) demands that manufacturers cease making 15-passenger vans, (3) urges NHTSA to send a warning letter to owners of 15-passenger vans alerting them to hazards of vehicles, (4) asks insurers to raise rates for 15-passenger vans, and (5) asks the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration to require Commercial Drivers License for operators of 15-passenger vans.

Stopping Rollovers: The Dual Wheel Solution for 15-Passenger Vans
[1.11 MB] (Nov., 2002) 42-page report by Public Citizen, a non-profit lobbying organization, examines hazards of 15-passenger vans. Noting there are more than 500,000 of these vehicles on the road, the Public Citizen report says that vans could be made safer by retrofitting them with dual-rear wheels.

National Transportation Safety Board report of May 8, 2001 rollover accident near Henrietta, Texas. A 1993 Dodge Ram 15-passenger van was transporting 11 passengers and the driver.The left rear tire blew out and the van overturned several times. The driver and three passengers sustained fatal injuries.