10 wedding guests were killed and 25 injured when the bus they were travelling in crashed at a roundabout near Greta. Photo: AFP PHOTO / ABC
Rules to be introduced over the next few years will mean all new buses fitted with seatbelts in Australia will also need to have audio announcements and signs reminding passengers to wear them.
The changes are in response to the 2023 Hunter Valley bus crash - where 10 wedding guests were killed and 25 injured when the bus they were travelling in crashed at a roundabout near Greta.
The tragedy started a bus safety movement with state and federal governments either expanding or creating groups to focus on preventing a similar tragedy.
The signs on buses will be similar to those on planes. Photo: Supplied: Dean Moule
Seatbelts also came under scrutiny during a recent bus crash in southern New South Wales, which killed a bus driver.
The federal government will today announce its first significant seatbelt reform since the federal Bus Safety Working Group was established last year.
Regional Development Assistant Minister Anthony Chisholm said the changes would ensure prompts on buses were similar to those seen on aircraft.
"When you sit down there will be that reminder to encourage you to wear your seatbelt when the bus is travelling," he said.
It is a legal requirement in Australia for passengers to wear a seatbelt on a bus if one is available.
'Huge step'
The Australian Design Rule being introduced to improve seatbelt safety has four main changes:
- Buses will have an audible announcement when the door closes and the bus starts to move with a message saying: "Please fasten seatbelts while seated."
- A visible label will be on the back of every seat saying: "Fasten seatbelts while seated."
- There will be a lit-up sign at the front of every section of a bus prompting seatbelt use.
- An exemption will be removed allowing some buses with seats under 1 metre high from not requiring seatbelts.
The requirements will come into effect for new bus models from November 1, 2026 and all new registered buses, regardless of the model, at the same time the following year.
About 500 buses will be fitted with seatbelt signs from next year. (ABC News: Lucas Hill) Photo: ABC News: Lucas Hill
Dean Moule is the national technical manager for the Bus Industry Confederation, the peak body for Australia's bus and coach industry.
He said it was "a huge, significant step" towards improved bus safety.
"We've seen seatbelt occupancy in some buses under 10 per cent," Mr Moule said.
There will be about 500 buses fitted with the additional safety initiatives each year from November 2026.
However, thousands of buses across the country will not be required to have the prompts because they do not have seatbelts.
Buses without seatbelts are exempt from the rule changes. Photo: ABC Newcastle: Romy Stephens
"If a bus doesn't have seatbelts, for example a city bus, those prompts are not required," Mr Moule said.
Buses with seatbelts will still be permitted to take standing passengers.
Calls for further reform
John Gaffney is the father of Mitchell Gaffney, the groom at the wedding that the bus departed from before it crashed near Greta.
He is also an engineer, with 40 years' experience in traffic engineering and road safety.
Mr Gaffney said the seatbelt signage requirements were "a big step forward" but there was a lot more work to be done.
He said many of the new buses being rolled out were still "designed to have a lot of standing passengers".
"We have lots of school buses still around the country that don't have seatbelts."
There were more than 97,000 buses registered in Australia in 2023.
Almost 36 per cent of public transport users commute by bus.
Mr Gaffney said the federal Bus Safety Working Group needed to be made permanent.
"The fingerprint is there as to why the road toll has gone up in recent years, and it's time the nation rethinks how it considers road safety and vehicle engineering - it's one of those areas where we've taken the foot off the pedal," he said.
"The NSW [Bus Industry] Taskforce very clearly reports on the need for much closer federal government involvement.
"So the NSW government is hinting … the states can't do this on their own."
It is understood the Bus Safety Working Group will continue to work with the transport department on reviewing and updating national standards for vehicle safety as required.
The driver of the bus that crashed near Greta, Brett Andrew Button, has been sentenced to 32 years in jail with a non-parole period of 24 years.
- ABC
