Like all Georgia school districts, Gwinnett County Schools officials are responsible for submitting data to state officials each time a driver sideswipes another car, or loses a mirror to a low-hanging tree branch.
After that, the data – printed computer screen images containing data submitted to the Georgia Department of Education through an online portal – likely collects dust at school district headquarters.
Other school districts keep bus crash data on digital spreadsheets. A request by The Atlanta Journal-Constitution for bus accident data from Gwinnett County Schools resulted in about 702 reports on more than 2,000 pages at a cost of approximately $400.
Jorge Gomez, Gwinnett County Schools’ executive director of administration and policy, never replied to a question on how the district uses the compiled information.
LEARN MORE: METRO SCHOOL BUS SAFETY DATA
“When we report accidents to the state we log into their system and type in the information,” Gomez said via email. “We then print a copy for our records.”
About a dozen bus drivers were cited for more than three accidents over the five-year reporting period, with the district reporting more than 700 accidents to the Georgia Department of Transportation from 2012 to 2016.
No students were hurt in a recent accident in Sugar Hill on March 21, though Gwinnett County Police said the driver had visible injuries.
About the Author
