SIOUX FALLS, S.D. (KELO.com) -- Sioux Falls Schools Superintendent Brian Maher says the district is in a fact-finding mode right now on whether to move toward seat belts on school buses.
New federal guidelines recommend seat belts on all school buses.
Dr. Maher says many factors must be looked at first, from cost to logistics, to most importantly, impact on student safety.
"Does it make them invincible, we would all love that, or does it make them a little bit safer. Where on that continuum of safety do the three-point seat belts come in..."
Maher says the restraint systems might lead to two students per seat instead of the current three which might mean the need for more school buses.
"...More buses because of the need for more bus routes and what does that mean to us in terms of cost."
Right now, Maher says the school district is still digesting the new reccomended guidelines.
School Bus Incorporated, which operates buses for the school district, estimates that if restraint systems are eventually approved, it would result in about 25 additional school buses and an additional cost of $1.5 million.