SAD but true. By all accounts, it was a death waiting to happen.

It was seen as coming by quite a few - concerned parents, the media, parliamentarians and bus drivers.

Yet, little was done to prevent it.

As we say good-bye to young Russell Koh, let us not allow his tragic passing to be in vain.

Let us make the seat belt compulsory not only in minibuses but in all modes of school transport.

The history of the debate more than justifies the call.

On 7 Feb 2006, The New Paper called for compulsory seat belts in its report, 'Time for belts on school buses?'.

Then, the pupils of Mayflower Primary School had been lucky to have escaped with slight injuries from an accident.

It could have been much worse, since the bus had fallen on its side.

The father of a girl who had the worst injury - a fractured elbow - suggested seat belts should be installed in school buses.

Mr Neo Tian Beng, 39, president of the Singapore School and Private Hire Bus Owners' Association, was all for it.

'It's for safety and in an accident, it may help to prevent serious injuries,' he had said.

Mr Wong Ann Lin, chairman of the Singapore School Transport Association, had agreed.

He said his association had met the Land Transport Authority (LTA) over the feasibility of installing seat belts in school buses as early as 2000, following suggestions from parents.

When TNP contacted LTA at that time, its stand was that with the 'current safety requirements, it would not be necessary to make seat belts compulsory for school buses'.

But it added that it did regularly review the need for seat belts for school buses.

This message was repeated in Parliament the following month. And it has been repeated in various media reports since 2006.

SAME POSITION?

But nothing has changed.

The LTA's position on school buses does not seem to have shifted much. In a report in The Straits Times yesterday, it said it might consider making seat belts compulsory in minibuses.

What about the bigger buses?

Must there be a fatal accident involving a 30-seater bus before we review the policy again?

This article was first published in The New Paper on Apr 30, 2008.