Three cheers for the bus drivers. A new federal report confirms that school buses continue to be a safe method of travel — no doubt due to conscientious bus drivers who make student safety their top priority.

A report issued by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration's National Center for Statistics and Analysis found that from 1995 to 2005, only 0.33 percent of all fatal traffic crashes were classified as school-transportation related. Only 8 percent of those fatalities (about 0.03 percent) involved school bus passengers.

At NYSUT's most recent annual SRP conference, school bus drivers talked about how technological advances, programs such as "I see you, you see me," and more aggressive prosecution of drivers who ignore bus stop signs have made transportation even safer.

Although school bus fatalities are rare, the report shed some light on when and how they tend to occur. Some of the interesting facts from the report are:

• Fatal crashes are more likely to occur after noon than before noon. The highest number of fatalities occurred from 3:00 to 3:59 p.m., followed by 7:00 to 7:59 a.m.

• In 52 percent of all crashes involving fatalities to occupants of a school transportation vehicle, the principal point of impact was the front of the vehicle. The second most common point of impact was the right side, followed by the left side.

• In accidents where school-age pedestrians were killed, it was most common for the vehicle to be going straight at the time; the second most common maneuver was that the school bus was starting in a traffic lane.

• The most common victims in school bus-related fatalities are drivers of other vehicles, followed by pedestrians. Since 1995, 45 bus drivers have been killed in fatal crashes, and 74 bus passengers.

To read the report, visit the NHTSA Web site at http://www.nhtsa.dot.gov/ and perform a keyword search for "school bus."