Recently published research from the Norwegian Institute of Transport Economics has provided further inputs to ETF’s campaign to protect bus and coach drivers from fatal frontal collisions. What’s more, a technical solution is now in sight. All that is needed is action by policymakers.
A danger hiding in plain sight
As previous research has shown, when a bus collides head-on, even at relatively low urban speeds, the consequences for the driver can be catastrophic. Commissioned by the Norwegian government, researchers at the Institute of Transport Economics (TOI) in Norway have been examining the extent of this problem for several years. A report published in 2025 estimated that 963 bus drivers in Europe have been killed or severely injured in frontal collisions in the past 10 years. In a more detailed analysis released on February 24 2026, researchers from TOI simulated low-speed (30km/h) collisions between two buses, varying the angle and overlap of impact. In almost every single scenario, the drivers were crushed between the seat and the steering column.
This isn’t a hypothetical concern. Three fatal accidents in Norway have already shown exactly this pattern. With bus fleets across Europe increasingly transitioning to electric vehicles, which are heavier than their diesel counterparts, the risk is only set to grow. The heavier the bus, the greater the energy of impact, and the lower the speed at which a frontal collision becomes fatal. (....)