NHTSA Complaint #11617178 — 2020 BLUE BIRD ALL AMERICAN SCHOOL BUS

I am writing to bring to your attention several persistent issues we have encountered with the Blue Bird student seating in our buses. The seat backs, constructed from a black mesh material welded at all four corners and secured with a top bar, have repeatedly failed. We have observed that nearly all of our seats have broken seat backs, necessitating multiple repairs at Central States of Lexington. Despite these efforts, we continue to find broken seat frames. This is particularly concerning as, in the event of an accident, these seats would not adequately provide the necessary compartmentalization for student safety. We are in the process of replacing the seat frames in the buses that are currently damaged, but given our experience, we believe that using the same materials will only result in further issues in the near future. To date, we have identified a total of six buses affected by this problem. The Kentucky Department of Education has conducted a review of our district's situation and expressed dissatisfaction with the quality of the seats provided by Blue Bird. This leads us to believe that this issue may not be limited to our district or state. Please advise on how you would like to proceed with the investigation of this complaint. We currently have one bus out of service at our shop, available for in-person inspection. Additionally, I can provide photographs that document the problems we have encountered with the seating in our Blue Bird buses. Thank you for your attention to this urgent matter. I look forward to your prompt response.