HOUSTON -- Note: The following story is a verbatim transcript of an Investigators story that aired on Tuesday, Aug. 28, 2007, on KPRC Local 2 at 10 p.m.

Local 2 investigates what's become a Texas school tradition. Part of our commitment to being your education station is looking at students' safety.

Tonight, we look at a potential bus danger, but it's not on the ride to and from school.

Investigative reporter Amy Davis looks into school road trips and the emotional plea from parents to change the way students travel.

"It was more comfortable. It was considered a treat," said Jeanette Forman, a parent of an injured student.

"We chose a more comfortable ride for our kids. We didn't know we were compromising their safety," said Brad Brown, parent of Ashley Brown.

On a rainy day in March 2006, a charter bus carrying the girls' soccer team from Beaumont's West Brook High School rolled out and crashed in Liberty County.

The cheerful team was headed to a playoff game in Humble. The crash sent many of the girls flying through the bus' broken windows -- some trapped between the bus and the road.

Alicia Bonura, 18, and Ashley Brown, 16, died that day. Dozens of others were seriously hurt.

"How many parents thought your children would be safer on a charter bus than a school bus?" Amy Davis asked.

"We all supported that," the parents said.

They all supported paying for a charter bus, thinking it was nicer and more comfortable.

These are the parents of the girls who died and those now suffering life-changing injuries.

After more than a year of immeasurable pain and lots of research, these parents now have a different take on charter buses.

"Without knowing, we traded safety to provide our kids comfort. We didn't know we were making that compromise," Brown said.

"You figure this bright, shiny motor coach has got to be a better, safer form of transportation for your kid. You assume that, but in reality the school bus was the better choice of the two," said Mike Bonura, parent of Alicia Bonura.

That's right. These parents are now convinced the yellow school bus is the safer way for students to travel, even on long trips.

They say they have the research to back it up. But as the school year starts, districts across the Houston area will send thousands of athletes, band members and student groups out of town on charter buses.

HISD spent more than $1 million on charter buses in the past two school years alone.

These parents say it's a bad decision repeated with each trip.

"Had it been a school bus, even if the accident would have happened the exact same way, we feel like they would have stayed in the bus," said Steve Forman, a parent of an injured student.

School buses must meet specific standards on roof strength, seat safety and window size.

Those same standards are not required on motor coaches and charter buses.

Many also do not have impact-resistant windows that would keep them from breaking in a crash.

Like in the girls' accident, most people who die in charter bus crashes die because they're thrown out of the bus. State law only allows school buses to take students to and from school, but charter buses and motor coaches can be used for extra-curricular trips.

"The motor coach industry wasn't saying, 'Oh by the way, we're not required to be as safe as a school bus.' They're not telling any parents that. They're not even telling school districts that," Steve Forman said.

"In fact, the motor coach industry tells us it's shocked anyone would think school buses are safer on the highway than its big buses. An association president says unlike school buses, motor coaches are specifically designed for highway travel and there's no comparison when it comes to high-speed safety," Davis reported.

But, those in Beaumont are not convinced. The school district no longer uses any charter buses.

Instead, its bought a fleet of larger, seatbelt-equipped school buses for out-of-town travel, complete with air conditioning and DVD players.

The cost is about half the amount of renting motor coaches.

"We always knew we were safer and we were telling folks all the time, but no one was listening to us," said Clifton Guillory, Beaumont ISD director of transportation.

It took their children's lives to get the attention of these parents. They're now trying to convince others to change the way they think about buses.

"If they only knew the pain that we feel, they would put their kids on the safest kind of transportation possible," said JoAnne Bonura, a parent of Alicia Bonura.

"If people aren't convinced to do things differently, it's going to happen again," Brown said.

This summer, the Beaumont parents pushed state lawmakers to pass a law requiring seat belts on school buses and when students travel on charter buses.

However, the charter bus requirement does not take effect until 2011. That's why the parents are still urging change now.

Tomorrow, we'll tell you why they're not the only ones calling for change. We'll talk with the nation's former top safety director, who says the charter bus industry is ignoring safety research.

More Information:

West Brook Bus Crash Families: SafeBuses4Kids.org
United Motorcoach Association