Sat, Oct 11, 2008 (2:07 a.m.)

Federal regulations require foreign-made buses to meet American safety performance standards. But a disturbing loophole has been discovered that has allowed unsafe foreign-made buses to enter this country from Mexico.

As reported Wednesday by the Associated Press, the requirement that imported buses go through a registration process to ensure they are safe for U.S. highways has not been applied in cases where the vehicles are used for international trade. The consequences have been tragic.

In January a Volvo bus was involved in an accident in Texas that killed one man and injured several other people. The bus traveled daily between Houston and Monterrey, Mexico, engaged in international trade and therefore exempt from the safety standards. The wreck is still under investigation, but National Transportation Safety Board member Debbie Hersman told the AP the loophole is “big enough to drive a bus through.”

Of the 60 fatal bus accidents in this country over the past 10 years, 11 involved buses that were unsafe or illegal, American Bus Association Vice President Norm Littler said. Those 11 wrecks accounted for 129 of the 229 fatalities.

Blame should be directed at the Bush administration, which in 2005 withdrew a rule proposed three years earlier by then-Transportation Secretary Norman Mineta that would have extended the safety standards to buses crossing from Mexico. Border inspectors check bus brakes for wear or defects but do not have the training to determine whether the brakes meet stopping distance requirements or whether the seats meet flammability standards, the AP reported.

This loophole should be closed immediately to protect the public. Any bus entering this country, regardless of its purpose, should meet the same safety standards that are placed on American-made buses.