Just look at that. This truck is taller than a used kid (10 years old). I assume the truck can run over pretty much any other age but probably the driver might be able to see older kid’s heads. Or we could teach our kids to jump to school rather than walk. If you see a truck, jump and make eye contact before jumping while crossing the street. Or we could tell our kids to never go outside until they are 21.
Looking at normal buses, the driver is sat high up, right at the front and with a clear view in front of them. And it’s so weird the US school buses just ignore that design and are shaped like an old truck.
Up until recently, a good chunk of school buses were trucks, mainly based on the E/F350 - F650 platforms (or 3500 - 6500 if using GMC). Recently though, bus manufacturers are switching to internally designed platforms and the result is more cab-over buses and the ones that aren’t have a more swept hood (look at the Blue Bird Vision for an example). However, small buses are still based on truck platforms (E/F350, or GMC 3500)
A lot of those have been replaced with modern designs. Just like most things, the farther you are from a city the shittier things get.