Plano ISD compliance with state seatbelt bill could cost more than $16 million

Of 314 total buses currently operating, Hill said 216 are already up to code. The district has 79 buses without seatbelts and 19 with lap belts only.

PISD staff estimates that it would cost $16.17 million to replace every bus that is not in compliance with SB 546. The cost to retrofit all buses with the new seatbelts would be $6.57 million. Hill added that retrofitting all 98 buses would not be feasible as many are “close to the end of useful life.”

Taking a step back

Hill called the mandate “cost-prohibitive.”

“I think [the Texas Education Agency] is going to come to the same conclusion that every other school district in the state has come up with—that it's cost-prohibitive,” Hill said. “Either they can help fund it through the state safety grants that they do have available to them, or they can probably push that law back because eventually, all these buses, whenever they turn them over, are going to have three-point seat belts anyway.”

Hill added that he is confident in the safety of buses that currently do not have the three-point seat belts.

“The buses, even without seat belts, are one of, if not the safest vehicle on the highway,” he said. “That's one reason why they're $164,000 ... If they're ever in a collision, they're designed to collapse with those big cushioned seats around the passenger. So I feel very comfortable with the safety of the vehicle.”