Most Pennsylvania residents cringe when they hear about school bus accidents. The number of potential injuries in situations when a bus is full, can be overwhelming. It is likely that many were filled with dread earlier this month when a school bus was involved in a motor vehicle accident.

The accident occurred in Middletown Township, as the bus was picking up children to take them to school. The bus was stopped on Church Road, so that children could board, around 8:45 a.m. when it was rear ended by the car behind it. The person in that vehicle, a Toyota Avalon, was a 40-year-old man from Aston.

According to Pennsylvania State Police, in addition to the bus driver, the bus had 19 additional occupants, all juveniles. Fortunately, only one was hurt in the collision. The specifics of the injury are unknown but it was described as minor.

The outcome of this accident clearly could have been much worse. While there are many reasons the crash proved to not be serious, one reason is likely the size of the bus compared to the car that hit it.

There are many potential causes of car accidents. Negligence on the part of a driver is one of the most common. Driver behavior appears to be a contributing factor in this accident. State Police have indicated that the man driving the Toyota received a citation for following the bus too closely. It is unclear if the injury sustained by the child will lead to civil personal injury lawsuit as well.

Source: MediaPatch, "1 Minor Injury Following Car Crash Involving School Bus," Courtney Elko Jan. 4, 2012