For Immediate Release
September 6, 2018
DMV Completes 11,000 School Bus Safety Inspections
Department of Motor Vehicle (DMV) Commissioner Michael Bzdyra is pleased to announce that nearly 11,000 school bus and student transport vehicles have been inspected to be ready for the school year.
“Students across the state ride school buses and other school transportation vehicles every day,” said Commissioner Bzdyra. “The DMV ensures that special cargo, the school children, are brought to school and back on vehicles that passed rigorous safety inspections.”
As part of the vehicle safety check, DMV’s Commercial Vehicle Safety Division has annually examined these vehicles. View the video, School Bus Safety: 2018.
Bumper to bumper safety inspections include:
- Brakes are given skid tests to make sure they have efficient stopping abilities.
- All inside mechanical parts, including lights, seats, heaters, windows, rear door, front door, are in proper working order.
- The front end is inspected for any deficiencies and the undercarriage is examined for any problems.
- A major violation requires suspension from service until the problem is corrected. If a minor violation turns up, then the bus owner has 15 days to repair the defect and be certified by the owner/carrier as having been completed.
- If a bus is later found operating without having corrected the malfunction or defect, the bus company can face fines and penalties.
“Every driver shares in the responsibility for road safety,” Commissioner Bzdyra cautioned.
All motorists should:
- Watch for children traveling to school when driving in neighborhoods with school zones. Children are unpredictable in their actions, and it is motorists' responsibility to anticipate and prepare to react to what children may do.
- Drive slowly. Watch for children walking in the street, especially if there are no sidewalks in the neighborhood, and;
- Watch for children playing and gathering near school bus stops.
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