We demand that the Quebec government immediately equip school buses with proper anchoring systems so EACH child under age 4 1/2 can be secured in an approved car seat, in order to be more safely transported on school bus trips. Presently, the Quebec government is ignoring Transport Canada recommendations and the following federal regulation put in place in April 2007, which is posted on the Transport Canada website: "Recent Transport Canada research suggests that children under 18 kilograms, or younger than approximately 4 1/2 years old, do not benefit from compartmentalization as much as older children do. The heads of younger children are proportionately larger, causing them to move forward faster and make contact with the seat back in a different fashion. In addition, their bodies don't weigh enough to take full advantage of the energy-absorbing seat back design. Instead, they may bounce off awkwardly. Therefore, for children under 18 kilograms, or younger than approximately 4 1/2 years old, Transport Canada recommends the use of a standard car child seat that is appropriate to the child's height and weight." AND "As of 1 April 2007, all newly built school buses are required to come equipped with child seat anchors...The lower anchor allows for the base of a child seat to be installed in the bus, while the tether anchor allows the top of a child seat to be attached to the school bus seat. Vehicle use and its maintenance, including any associated retrofitting, is a provincial/territorial matter." Transport Canada has specified in black and white that it is NOT safe to transport children under age 4 1/2 on school buses without anchoring systems and proper car seats. We are angered that our Quebec government is allowing our young children to travel at extreme risk, and demand that the Quebec government immediately allocate the necessary funds to install the necessary number of anchoring systems not just on new buses, but on ANY and ALL school buses transporting daycare groups... to protect our most precious national resource... our innocent children. Please help us get 10,000 signatures this week and forward to all your family and friends to sign!

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