A school bus is a type of bus that is owned, leased, contracted, or operated by a school or school district and is regularly used to transport students to and from school or school-related activities, but excludes charter buses or transit buses. Around the world, various bus configurations are used; the most iconic example is the yellow school bus seen in the United States and Canada.
In North America, school buses are specially built vehicles that are distinguished from other bus types with design characteristics mandated by federal and state regulations. In addition to the use of special vehicle paint colors (yellow school buses), school buses are equipped with exterior warning lights (to give them traffic priority) and some security devices. Outside of North America, vehicles built specifically for student transport are less common. Depending on the location, students go to school on a transit bus (on a special school route), coach, or various other buses.
Every year in the United States and Canada, school buses provide about 8 billion student trips from home and school. Every school day by 2015, nearly 484,000 school buses carry 26.9 million children to and from schools and school-related activities; more than half of the US K-12 student population is transported by school bus.
Video School bus
Design history
19th century <19th_century: _Kid_hacks ">: Hacking
In the second half of the 19th century, many rural areas in the United States and Canada were served by one-room schools. For students living outside the practical distance on foot from school, transportation is facilitated in the form of child hacking; at that time, "hack" is a term that refers to a certain type of horse carriage.
One of the longest school bus producers, Wayne Works (later Wayne Corporation), began producing his first school carts in Indiana in the late 1880s. Basically a redesigned agricultural cart with the addition of an interior bench seat, this design features a rear entrance. As child hacks are horse-drawn vehicles, this feature is meant to avoid shocking horses while loading or unloading passengers.
1900-1930: Motor vehicle vans
After the first decade of the 20th century, student transportation underwent a major transition, as the vehicle switched from a horse-drawn carriage to a "no horse" automotive chassis. In terms of overall configuration, some initial changes are made, because the carriage body is adapted to the truck frame. For passenger compartments, rear entrances and perimeter seating remain. For much of the first three decades, the school bus body was given little, if any, weather protection, sometimes consisting of tarps stretching over passenger seats.
In 1927, the owner of Ford A.L dealer. Luce produced bus bodies for the 1927 Ford Model T. Unlike wooden buses before, Luce used wood only to frame the bus body, fence body with steel; this will be the first bus produced by what will eventually become the Blue Bird bus manufacturer. While the bus is built with a roof, the only weather protection provided by the roll-up canvas side curtain.
1930: All-metal school bus
During the 1930s, some advances in school buses were seen that would change design and production forever. To further customize the design of the automotive chassis, the school bus entrance is moved from the rear to the front ramp, a driver-operated door (for easy loading of passengers and improved visibility forwards). However, the school bus held back the door, remade as an emergency exit. After the introduction of the paneled Luce 1927 bus, bus school manufacturing began to transition to all the steel bus bodies. In 1930, both Wayne and Superior introduced the all-steel school bus, with the latter introducing the body with a safety glass window.
Since the school bus design was aligned with the design of light commercial trucks up to medium at the time, the emergence of the front controller trucks would have its own influence on the school bus design. In an effort to gain additional seating capacity and visibility, Crown Coach builds its own school bus driver design from the ground up. The highest-capacity school bus of the time, Crown Supercoach 76 passengers was given the right name, as many California school districts operate on terrain that require heavy-duty vehicles. As the 1930s grew, flat school buses began to follow motorcoach designs in style as well as engineering, partly industrial reasons adopting a "transit style" in naming them. In 1940, the first-engined secondary school bus was produced by Gillig in California.
Develop production standards
The nature of specially built school buses creates the inherent obstacles to their massive, profitable mass production. Although the school bus design has moved from the previous generation cart-style carts, there has been no industry standard agreement for school buses. Organized by a rural educational expert Dr. Frank W. Cyr, the 1939 week-long conference at Teachers College, Columbia University forever changed the design and production of school buses. Funded by a $ 5,000 grant, Cyr has invited transportation officials, representatives from body and chassis manufacturers, and paint companies.
To reduce the complexity of school bus production and improve safety, a set of 44 standards are agreed upon and adopted by participants (such as interior and exterior dimensions and front-facing seating configurations). To enable the production of large-scale school buses among body manufacturers, the adoption of these standards allows greater consistency among body producers.
While many of the standard 1939 conferences have been modified or updated, one part of the inheritance remains an essential part of every school bus in North America today: the adoption of standard paint colors for all school buses. While technically named the Glossy Yellow National School Bus , the yellow school bus was adopted for use because it was considered the easiest to see at dawn and dusk, and it contrasted well with the black letters. Although not universally used worldwide, yellow has become the shade most often associated with school buses in both North America and abroad.
1940: Transition in role
In the years leading up to World War II, school buses will begin to take on a new role in the education system. This will cause the school district to buy and operate their own school bus fleet, taking over from bus owners operated by local individuals.
In all but the most isolated areas, the one-bedroom schools of the turn of the century have been removed and consolidated for the multi-grade schools seen in urban areas. After the war and the emergence of suburban growth in North America, the need for school buses began to be used for more than just rural areas; beyond a certain distance from home, community design often makes walking to school impractical, especially when students progress to secondary school.
1920s-1960s: Adapt to requests
In the early 1950s, baby boomers started their education, leading to a significant increase in student populations throughout North America; this would be a factor that directly affected the production of school buses into the early 1980s. To accommodate a larger student population, school buses began to grow in size, adding additional rows of seats to the bus body. Coinciding with a larger body, truck manufacturers began to offer heavy duty bus chassis. The same applies to transit-style school buses, as the first diesel-powered school bus was introduced in 1954 and the first tandem school bus in 1955 (a Crown Supercoach, with 91-seater seating capacity). In the late 1950s, new options were developed, which are set in many school buses today: roadside wheelchair lifts to transport passengers using wheelchairs.
When full-size school buses grew larger during the 1950s and early 1960s, they became difficult to navigate crowded and crowded urban streets; Other rural routes are very isolated, with streets that can not accommodate full-size buses. To fill this role, yellow painted vehicles such as International Travelall and Chevrolet Suburban are being used. When they entered production in the 1960s, passenger vans such as Chevrolet Van/GMC Handi-Van, Dodge A100, and Ford Econoline were converted into school buses, mostly with the addition of red warning lights and yellow paint. The downside of using passenger vans and utility vehicles is that, along with lower seating capacity, they can not offer the same level of security as a full-size school bus.
1970s: Focus on security
During the 1970s, school buses will experience a number of safety-related design improvements. While many changes are related to protecting passengers, others are intended to minimize the possibility of a traffic collision. To reduce confusion over traffic priorities (improve safety around school bus stops), federal and state regulations are changed, requiring many states/provinces to add yellow warning lights in red warning lights. Similar to a yellow traffic light, the yellow light is activated before it stops (at a distance of 100-300 feet (30.5-91.4 m)), indicating to the driver that the school bus will stop and unload/load the students. Adopted by a number of countries during the mid-1970s, yellow warning lights became almost universal equipment on new school buses in the late 1980s. To supplement the additional warning lights, to help prevent drivers from passing the stopped school bus, a stop arm is added to almost all school buses; connected to the cable from the warning light, the deployable stop arm is extended during the bus stop with its own set of red flashing lights.
During the 1960s, like standard passenger cars, concerns began to arise for the protection of passengers in a catastrophic traffic collision. At that moment, the weak point of the body structure is the body's joints; where the panels and pieces are glued together, the joints can rupture in major accidents, with the bus body causing danger to passengers. After subjugating a bus to a rollover test in 1964, in 1969, Ward Body Works pointed out that fastener has a direct effect on the quality of the connection (and that body manufacturers use relatively few nails and fasteners). In his own research, Wayne Corporation found that the joints of the body are the weak points themselves. In 1973, to reduce the risk of separating body panels, Wayne introduced Wayne Lifeguard, a school bus body with single body parts and roof coverings. While the single-piece stamps seen at Lifeguard have their own manufacturing challenges, the school bus currently uses relatively few side panels to minimize the joints of the body.
From 1939 to 1973, the production of school buses was largely self-regulated. In 1973, the first federal regulations governing school buses came into effect, as FMVSS 217 was required for school buses; regulations governing the emergency exit/outgoing exit window. Following a focus on the structural integrity of school buses, NHTSA introduced four Federal Vehicle Safety Standards for School Buses, which were implemented on 1 April 1977, bringing significant changes to the design, engineering, and construction of school buses. and a substantial increase in safety performance.
While many of the changes related to the 1977 safety standards were made under the body structure (to increase lethargy), the most noticeable change was the passenger seat. In place of a metal-back passenger seat seen since the 1930s, the regulation introduces a higher seat with thick pads on the front and rear, acting as a protective barrier. Further improvements have resulted in ongoing efforts by the US National Railway Safety Agency (NHTSA) and Transport Canada, as well as by the bus industry and various safety advocates. By 2018 of production, all of these standards remain in effect.
In the 1970s, the bushing school was further expanded, arguing controversially; a number of larger cities began to become bus students in an attempt to integrate schools racially. Due to need, additional usage creates further demand for bus production.
As producers sought to develop safer school buses, a new generation of small school buses was developed. In the mid-1970s, Wayne Busette and Blue Bird Micro Bird were introduced. To replace the passenger van conversion, the manufacturer initiates the production of a bus body using a cutaway van chassis; this combination offers additional seating capacity in addition to the construction of a safer body.
1980s-1990s: Transitions in production
In the early 1980s, almost all generations of baby-boomers have completed high school education, leading to a decline in student populations in North America. Coupled with a recessionary economy in the early 1980s, the school bus production industry was left with huge overcapacity; some manufacturers are in financial ruin.
During the 1980s and 1990s, safety will remain the highlight of many redesigns and school bus introductory models. To increase the visibility of the loading zone, the bus body design begins to drive the driver upward, outboard, and forward; The windshield grows larger in size. Fixing the ergonomics of the driver compartment is intended to reduce distraction, which causes increased control and switches. To avoid stopping in driving stops and goes (and in potentially dangerous places, such as crossing or railroad crossings), automatic transmissions have begun to replace manual transmissions during the 1980s. As a result of the fuel shortages of the 1970s, measures are also being taken to improve the school bus fuel economy. In the 1980s, manufacturers began plugging diesel engines as an option in conventional and small school buses; previously, diesel engines are considered a premium option that is only used on public transport buses. In 1986, Navistar International became the first chassis manufacturer to completely shut down the gasoline engine. Other manufacturers followed, and diesels replaced the gasoline engines on almost all full-size school buses in the mid-1990s.
In 1986, with the signing of the Commercial Vehicle Safety Law, school bus drivers across the United States were required to obtain a commercial driver license (CDL); while still being issued by individual countries, the federal CDL requirement ensures that large vehicle drivers such as school buses have consistent training levels. School buses are generally regarded as Class C vehicles with passenger and namesake support, but the highest-capacity versions require a Class B license (based on their higher GVWR).
Demand for better future visibility and better turning radius led to a large expansion of market share for transit-style school buses in the late 1980s and early 1990s. Originally, this was led by Wayne Lifestar 1986; however, AmTran Genesis, Blue Bird TC/2000, and Thomas Saf-T-Liner MVP will prove to be much more successful. In 1996, AmTran introduced the AmTran RE, the first low-cost backyard school bus.
During the 1990s, emerging trends among body manufacturers were mergers, joint ventures, and acquisitions among major chassis suppliers. Navistar International became the owner of AmTran (formerly Ward), Spartan Motors bought Carpenter, and Thomas Built Buses was bought by Freightliner.
2000s: 21st century school bus
At the beginning of the 21st century, consolidation of manufacturers and industrial contractions will require production changes among the remaining school bus producers. Gone are the days of customers choosing and choosing the school bus body and casing separately; The acquisition of AmTran and Thomas along with General Motors supply arrangements with Blue Bird has reduced the separate combinations available to build. Although the choice aspect disappears, the decline in complexity opens the way for new product innovations that were previously considered impossible.
In the past, conventional-style bus bodied on a chassis supplied by a separate manufacturer. For 2004, two manufacturers introduced a conventional body school bus that integrates body and chassis in one manufacturer. Blue Bird introduces Vision; in All American mode, the chassis is designed by a company specifically for bus use and built in its own factory. Thomas Built Buses introduced Thomas Saf-T-Liner C2; although the chassis comes from the Freightliner M2 Business Class, the chassis and the C2 body are designed together as a unique vehicle. A key feature of both Vision and C2 is increased visibility around the loading zone; both vehicles have a very sloping hood and extra glass around the bus entrance. In a major change from manufacturing precedents, C2 is the first use of adhesive bonds to join the body panels and minimize rivet needs in school buses.
After the sale of P-chassis General Motors to a subsidiary of Navistar Workhorse in 1998, the configuration of the Type B bus mostly began to disappear. In their place, cutaway Class 4-5 trucks begin to appear; various school buses use taxi Chevrolet/GMC C4500 and International 3200 cutaway. In 2006, the IC Bus introduced the BE200, the first Type B bus with a fully castrated chassis (Type C body is scaled down).
During the 1990s, mergers and acquisitions will continue to influence the production of school buses; However, in addition to the failure of the startup manufacturer Liberty Bus, contractions are largely absent. In 2007, Collins Bus Corporation, the largest independent manufacturer of Type A buses, acquired Canadian manufacturer Corbeil from bankruptcy. Corbeil joins the Ohio Mid Bus-based plant as a Collins subsidiary; manufacturing of three product lines consolidated at Collins's Kansas plant. In 2009, Blue Bird and Girardin entered into a joint venture; Girardin now produces all small-bus product lines for Blue Bird.
During the 2000s, security devices were updated, such as lap type belts that were largely replaced with 3 point seatbelts. The cross-school bus, first introduced in the late 1990s, was adopted by a number of jurisdictions. Electronics took on a new role in bus school operations. To improve the safety and security of children, alarm systems have been developed to prevent children from being left out on school buses without overnight supervision.
2010s: School bus "Green"
Over the last decade, a number of changes have been made to develop a new generation of school buses; many changes focused on the production of environmentally friendly vehicles. In 2009, Blue Bird introduced a propane-fueled version of its conventional vision, becoming the first manufacturer to sell propane-fueled school buses from the factory. In 2011, the Lion Bus (Autobus Lion) from Saint-JÃÆ' Â © rÃÆ'Â'me, Quebec marked the return of full-size bus production to Canada. In partnership with Spartan Motors, the company marked the first new factory of a full-size school bus since 1992. Producing a conventional-style bus body, Lion became the first manufacturer to adopt designs primarily with composite panels as a traditional replacement. steel used.
During mid-2010, although diesel engines remain a primary source of school bus strength, school bus producers have expanded the offering of alternative fuel vehicles, with propane and CNG offered through multiple manufacturers by 2015. In a reversal from the 1990s, gasoline engines became available on conventional-style school buses by 2016, offering quieter interiors along with simpler emissions equipment.
While hybrid electric diesel school buses see little interest among operators, some school buses have been produced with utmost power. In 2012, Trans Tech produced a limited series of eTrans, cutaway-body buses based on Smith Electric Newton electric trucks; eTrans was replaced in 2014 by SSTe, Trans Tech/Ford E450 school bus converted into electric power. In 2015, Autobus Lion introduced eLion, the first full-size electric school bus. By 2017, Blue Bird announced its intention to produce electric power versions of Type A, Type C, and Type D buses.
In the past decade, onboard GPS tracking devices have taken on the dual roles of fleet management and location tracking. GPS tracking not only allows internal cost management, but can also be used to remind waiting parents and students about the location of their bus in real-time. It is used in the United States as well as world markets, such as India.
Maps School bus
Manufacturing
In many cases, the school bus body company serves as a second-tier manufacturer. However, some school buses (usually those with a Type D configuration) have bodies and chassis produced from one manufacturer.
By 2015, 40,190 school buses were sold in the US and Canada and 40,513 in 2007. In 2013, 36,073 school buses were sold in North America, up 12.6% compared to 2012.
Configuration
Outside of North America, buses used to transport students come from existing vehicles: transit buses, buses, and minibuses. In the United States and Canada, many state and federal regulations require school buses to be produced as specially tailored vehicles that are separate from other buses.
Of the school buses built specifically in North America, there are four school bus configurations. All school buses have a single deck design, with gradual entry. In the United States, school buses are limited to a maximum width of 102 at (2.59 m) and a maximum length of 45 feet (13.7 m). Depending on the specifications, the school bus is currently designed with seating capacity of up to 90 passengers.
Production (North America)
In the United States and Canada, school buses are currently produced by nine different manufacturers. Four of them - Collins Industries, Starcraft Buses, Trans Tech, and Van Con - specialize exclusively in small buses. Thomas Build Buses and Blue Bird Corporation (the latter, through a joint venture of Micro Birds with Girardin) - produces small and large buses. Bus IC and Lion Bus produce full-size bus exclusively.
In business since 2011, Quebec-based Lion Bus is currently in the process of becoming a manufacturer of electric vehicles; in 2017, the company changed its name to Lions Electric Company (in French, La Compagnie ÃÆ' â € ° lectrique Lion); the company produces the body on a conventional style chassis manufactured by Spartan Motors. In the past, Canada was also home to several US companies (Blue Bird, Thomas, Wayne); School buses produced in Canada are exported to the United States, and Canada imports many buses produced in the US. Domestically, the Quebec-based Corbeil company produced full and small school buses from 1985 to 2007. In 2008, it was purchased by Collins Industries, largely to serve as the Canadian Collins brand.
Other school bus
In both the public and private education systems, outside the school buses in regular route services, there are two other uses that involve school buses. The "activity bus" is a school bus that is used to provide transportation for students. Instead of being used in the route service (home to school), the purpose of using the activity bus is to transport students solely for extracurricular activities. Depending on state and provincial regulations, the buses used for this purpose may be either a regular yellow school bus or a special unit for this purpose. Special activity buses, though not painted yellow, are equipped with similar interiors as well as the same traffic control device to drive students (in other schools).
In the past, groups transporting children and adults who did not need (or buy) a large bus that normally used 15 passenger vans to handle their transport. However, such vehicles are disadvantaged by comparisons in terms of meeting safety regulations. To provide alternatives to 15 passenger vans (called "inappropriate vans" because they do not meet safety standards for school buses), bus manufacturers have designed vehicles as an alternative to the 15 passenger vans. This is called M ulti- F unction S chool A usage B using (MFSAB ). The basic design of MFSAB is different from the yellow school bus because of its intended use. Because they are meant for point-to-point transport rather than route services, MFSABs are not equipped with traffic control devices (ie, red warning lights, stopping arms) or they are painted yellow school buses. MFSAB buses are usually based on Type A school buses, although manufacturers offer MFSAB configurations for full-size buses as well.
For educational use, MFSAB is primarily used for extracurricular activities requiring transportation; in the private sector, they are usually purchased by child care centers.
School bus safety
Since the initial development of consistent school bus standards in 1939, much of the changes that have taken place in school buses over the last 75 years have been related to safety, in particular in response to more stringent regulations adopted by state and federal governments. Since the adoption of yellow as the standard color, school buses deliberately blend the concept of similarity into their designs. When making a student dropoff or pickup, traffic laws give priority to school buses on other vehicles; to stop traffic, they are equipped with flashing lights and stop signs.
As a result of their size, school buses have a number of blind spots around the exterior of the vehicle that could endanger passengers who descend from buses or pedestrians standing or walking nearby. To address this security challenge, the key point of the school bus design is focused on exterior visibility, improving the design of bus windows, mirrors, and windshields to optimize visibility for the driver. In the case of collisions, the school bus body structure is designed with an integral roll cage; as school buses carry a large number of student passengers, the school bus is designed with several emergency exits to facilitate a quick exit.
Controversy exists over the use of seat belts as a restraint system for school bus passengers; officials of the US National Transportation School public buses are safer than private cars even if they are not equipped with seatbelts.
Visibility
The top priority for bus drivers while driving, as well as when loading and unpacking students, is the exact line of sight around their vehicle; blind spots formed by school buses can be a significant risk for bus drivers and traffic as well as pedestrians. In the United States, about 2/3 students killed outside school buses are not attacked by other vehicles, but with their own buses.
To solve this problem, the school bus is determined by a sophisticated and comprehensive mirror system. In redesigning the school bus body, driver visibility and overall line of sight has become an important consideration. Compared to the school buses from the 1980s, the school bus from the 2000s had much larger window panes and fewer blind spots.
Yellow color
Yellow was adopted as the standard color for North American school buses beginning in 1939. In April of that year, Frank W. Cyr, a professor at Teachers College at Columbia University in New York, organized a meeting to set national school bus development standards, including the application of color standard paint. The color known as the "yellow school bus" is chosen because the black letters in certain hues are the easiest to see in the morning and morning dark.
Officially, the yellow school bus is named "National School Bus Chrome" (currently renamed "National School Bus Glossy Yellow" after removal of lead from pigment). Although not a government specification outside the United States and Canada, yellow associations with school buses have led to the use of color (in part or in whole) on buses used in schools around the world. Some of the areas that set up school transportation services have conducted an evaluation of yellow American school buses, while other governments have set their own color requirements, supporting high visibility colors (such as white or orange) that are better suited to local climatic conditions.
Retoreflective marker
School buses often operate in low visibility conditions, such as early morning, or in bad weather, as well as in rural areas. While their yellow paint colors give them an edge on other vehicles, the darkness can make them hard to see. To increase their visibility, many state and provincial governments (eg, Colorado) require the use of yellow reflective tape on school buses.
Marking length, width, height, and in some cases, identifying buses as school buses, reflective tape makes vehicles easier to see in low light, also marks all emergency exits (so rescue workers can quickly find them in the dark).
Equal requirements in Canada are almost identical; the only difference is red can not be used as retroreflective color.
Traffic priority
In the mid-1940s, most states had traffic laws that required drivers to stop for school buses when children were loading or unloading. Justification for this protocol is:
- Children, especially younger ones, usually have not developed the mental capacity to fully understand the dangers and consequences of crossings, and under US lawsuits, a child can not be legally held responsible for his negligence. For the same reason, adult crossing guards are often placed in the walking zone between home and school.
- Not practical in many cases to avoid children crossing the passage after leaving the school bus or asking adults to accompany them.
- The size of the school bus generally limits visibility for children and riders during loading and unloading.
At least since the mid-1970s, all US states and Canadian provinces and territories have some sort of law stopping bus traffic; Although each jurisdiction requires traffic to stop for school buses loading and unloading passengers, different jurisdictions have different requirements about when to stop. Outside of North America, school buses stop traffic to unload and load children not provided. Instead of being given priority traffic, fellow drivers are encouraged to drive with extreme caution around the school bus.
Warning lights and stop weapons
Around 1946, the first system of traffic signal warning lights on school buses was used in Virginia. The system consists of a pair of sealed spotlights similar to those used in American headlamps at the time. Instead of colored glass lenses, warning lights use red lenses. The motorized rotary switch electrically alternates to red lights mounted on the left and right front and back of the bus, creating a wig-wag effect. Activation is usually through a mechanical switch attached to the door control. However, on some buses (such as the Gillig Transit launcher model and Kenworth-Pacific School Coach) activation of the roof warning system is through the use of pressure-sensitive switches on the manually controlled stop lever lever located to the left of the driver's seat under the window. When the pressure is lowered by extending the paddle, the electric current is switched on to the relay. Plastic lenses for warning lights were developed in the 1950s, though sealed beams - now with colorless glass lenses - were still most commonly used behind them until the mid-2000s, when the light-emitting diode (LED) began replacing the closed beam.
With the adoption of FMVSS 108 in January 1968, four additional warning lights were gradually added to the school bus; it is yellow and mounted in a red warning light. Intended to give an upcoming stop to the driver, since the entrance is opened at the stop, they are connected to a red light and stop sign. Although the 8-light system was adopted by many states and provinces during the 1970s and 1980s, red systems were still used by some locals such as Saskatchewan and Ontario, Canada, as well as on buses built in Wisconsin before 2005 and the older in California.
To help bus visibility in bad weather, school districts and school bus operators add a flashing strobe light to the roof of the bus. Some states (eg, Illinois) require strobe lights as part of their local specifications.
During the early 1950s, the state began to determine the mechanical stop signal sleeve in which the driver would swing out from the left side of the bus to alert the traffic of the ongoing bus stop. Part of the protruding stop arm in front of traffic is initially a trapezoidal shape with stop painted on it. National Vehicle Safety Standard US Federal Traffic Highway, Federal Vehicle Safety Standard no. 131 set the specs of the stop arm as a red octagonal two-sided rule stops at least 45 cm (17.7 inches), with white borders and upper-case legend. It should be retroreflective and/or equipped with alternating red flashing lights. Alternatively, the stop legend itself may also blink; this is usually achieved with a red LED. FMVSS 131 specifies that the signal arm stops installed on the left side of the bus, and is positioned so that when extended, the arms are perpendicular to the bus side, with the top edge aligned with and in 6 inches (15 cm) horizontal plane tangent to the bottom edge of the passenger window first behind the driver's window, and that the vertical center of the signal arm stops should be no more than 9 inches (23 cm) from the bus side. One stop signaling arm is required; the second one can also be installed. The second stop arm, when present, is usually installed near the back of the bus, and is not allowed to hold stop or any other legend on the forward-facing side when used.
Canadian Standards defined in Canadian Motor Vehicle Safety Standard no. 131, is substantially identical to US standards.
Security tools
In addition to warning devices that allow them to stop traffic around them when picking up or dropping off students, the school buses are also equipped with a number of different security devices to prevent accidents or injuries and for security purposes.
Emergency exit
For evacuation purposes, the school bus is equipped with at least one emergency exit other than the main entrance. Emergency exit door mounted on the back is a design feature that is maintained when the school bus is a horse-drawn carriage and the entrance is mounted on the back to avoid scaring the horses; on the school bus of the back engine, the door is replaced with an exit window with an exit door mounted on the side.
Additional exit doors may be located on the roof (roof hatch), exit windows, and/or emergency exits side. All opened by using a quick release latch that activates the alarm. The number of emergency exits on the school buses depends on the size of the bus (seating capacity) along with individual country regulations; Kentucky takes the most, with every full-size school bus having a total of eight emergency exits beside the entrance.
Loading and unload
To keep pedestrians from walking close enough to the front of the bus so that the hood obscures them from the view of the driver, some states, such as North Carolina and Connecticut, require school buses to be equipped with crossed arms. This is a device that extends from the front bumper when the bus stops to load or unload. With the design, passengers insist on walking forward a few yards ahead of the bus (into the driver's view) before they can walk across the street.
In the past, hand grip in the driveway posed a potential risk for students; when they get off the bus, items such as leash or other loose clothing can be caught if the driver is unconscious and withdraws with the students caught in the door. To minimize this risk, school bus producers have redesigned handrails and equipment in the stepwell area. In the School Bus Handbook Handbook , NHTSA describes a simple test procedure for identifying insecure handrails.
Video surveillance
Over the last two decades, video cameras have become common equipment installed inside school buses, especially to monitor and record passenger behavior. The video camera was also useful in determining the cause of the accident: on March 28, 2000, a Murray County school bus, Georgia, was hit by the CSX freight trains at an unsigned railway crossing; three children were killed. The bus driver claimed to have stopped and looked for the approaching train before continuing across the tracks, as required by law, but the onboard camera noted that the bus actually did not stop.
Because the digital recording device replaces the VHS camera, one device is replaced by multiple cameras across the bus, allowing for surveillance from some favorable point. An outside camera mounted on the bus to photograph a vehicle that illegally passes the school bus when it stops and warning lights are in use (thus committing a moving violation).
Seat belts
In contrast to cars and other light passenger vehicles, school buses are usually not equipped with seatbelts. In 1977, as given in the Federal Automotive Safety Vehicle Standard (FMVSS) 222, the US federal government required passive restraint and stricter structural integrity standards for school buses rather than requiring lap belts. Passive restriction standards freed school buses with gross vehicle weight (GVWR) of more than 10,000 pounds (4.5 metric tons) of need for seatbelts. The revised FMVSS 222 came into effect in October 2011 to require a three-point, lap/shoulder belt on all new Type A small school buses produced to improve occupant protection. The revised standard also introduces standards for testing bus seats equipped with belts/shoulders and anchor points for optional installation of this seat belt system in large school buses. Where in the past, seats equipped with seatbelts FMVSS 222 can reduce passenger capacity by up to one third, NHTSA recognizes new technologies that allow the use of seat belts for three small children (primary age) or two older children (middle school age) per seat.
Whether a seat belt should be a requirement has become a topic of controversy. In October 2013, the most recent National Association of State Director of Pupil Transportation Services (NASDPTS) mentioned at their annual transport conference (NAPT) that they now fully support the seat belt belt of three shoulder belts on school buses. By 2015, they are a requirement in at least five states: California, Florida, New Jersey, New York, and Texas. From the states that complement buses with two-round belt buckets (Florida, Louisiana, New Jersey and New York), only New Jersey requires the use of seat belts by motorists. In another state, it is up to the district or operator whether to require the driver to use it or not.
In July 2004, California became the first state to require a three-round/shoulder seat belt on all new Type A small school buses. A year later, this requirement was extended to large Type C and Type D buses. Texas had planned the adoption of a safety belt on the newly purchased school buses in 2010, with the state reimplementing the school district for additional fees. However, due to budget cuts, only 36% of planned funds are allocated for additional costs
Compartmentalization
In 1967 and 1972, as part of efforts to improve protection against accidents on school buses, researchers at UCLA will play a role in the development of interior design for gradual school buses in the late 1970s. Using metal-backed seats is then used as a comparison tool, some new seat designs are tested. In conclusion, UCLA researchers found that the safest design is a 28-inch high backrest which is a maximum of 24 inches, using the concept of compartmentalization as a passive restraint. While UCLA researchers found the boxed chutes to be the safest designs, they found active restraints (such as seatbelts) to be next in terms of the importance of passenger safety.
In 1977, FMVSS 222 mandated a change to the boxed seat, although altitude requirements were lowered to 24 inches.
According to NTSB, the main drawback of this design is the lack of protection in side impact collisions (with larger vehicles) and rollover situations. Although by design, students are protected from front to back by compartmentalization, allowing potential for ejection in other (but rare) accident situations.
Security results
As a result of security, three-quarters of the people killed by school buses were killed outside buses, when only 5% of casualties were bus passengers
More than four and fewer than six school-aged children are among the deaths of school transportation each year, according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.
School bus and neighborhood
In theory, school buses affect pollution in the same way as carpooling; On average, each school bus carries students equal to 36 vehicles separately. While bushing transports students on a much larger scale than using a car, the use of internal combustion engines is not entirely pollution-free (when compared to cycling or walking).
In 2017, more than 90% of North American school buses are powered by diesel engines. While the design offers higher fuel efficiency than gasoline, the health issues associated with exposure to diesel exhaust fumes have been a concern. From the early to mid-2000s, emissions standards for diesel engines have been significantly improved; the 2017 school bus meeting of emissions standards 60 times cleaner than the school bus from 2002 (and about 3,600 times cleaner than peers from 1990). To meet enhanced standards and regulations, diesel engines have been redesigned to use ultra-low sulfur diesel fuel with selective catalytic reduction that is a common emission control strategy.
Alternative fuels
Although diesel fuel is most commonly used in large school buses (and even in many smaller ones), alternatives such as LPG/propane and CNG have been developed to address the shortcomings caused by diesel-fueled school buses and gasoline for public health and the environment..
The use of propane as fuel for school buses began in the 1970s, largely in response to the energy crisis of the 1970s. Originally produced as a gasoline engine conversion (since both required ignition plugs), propane fell out of favor in the 1980s due to stable fuel prices, coupled with the use of wider diesel engines. At the end of 2000, propane-fueled powertrains re-entered production, as emissions regulations began to negatively impact the performance of diesel engines. In 2009, Blue Bird Corporation introduced the Blue Bird Vision version powered by LPG fuel engine. By 2018, three manufacturers offer propane-fueled full-size school buses (Blue Bird, IC, and Thomas), along with Ford and General Motors Type A chassis.
Compressed natural gas was first introduced to school buses in the early 1990s (with Blue Bird building the first CNG bus in 1991 and Thomas building the first in 1993) In 2018, CNG was offered by two full-size bus manufacturers (Blue Bird, Thomas ) along with Ford and General Motors Type A chassis.
Electric school bus
In theory, urban and suburban routes prove to be advantageous for the use of electric buses; charging can be done before and after the bus transports students (when the bus is parked). In the early 1990s, several battery-powered prototype bus models were developed as an existing school bus conversion; This is built primarily for research purposes.
During the 2000s, the electrification of school buses shifted toward the development of diesel-electric hybrid school buses. Intended as a tool to minimize idling engine while loading/unloading passengers and improving diesel fuel economy, hybrid school buses fail to gain widespread acceptance. The main factor in their market failure is the high price (almost double the price of standard school bus) and the complexity of the hybrid system.
In 2010, several full school electric buses will enter the market. Trans Tech Bus will produce two designs, eTrans (based on Smith Electric Newton's truck driver), and SST-e, Ford E-Series conversion. Lion Bus introduces the conventional eLion, the first full-size electric school bus, by 2015. By 2017, some manufacturers add electric school buses to their product ranges, with Blue Bird All American electric versions Blue Bird Vision, Micro Bird G5 on ford E450 Chassis, CE-Series IC, and Thomas Saf-T-Liner C2 make their debut for future production.
Other uses
The basic bodies of school buses are also used in the construction of various other vehicles, both as new vehicles and as the conversion of school bus retirement. The desired quality of the school bus body involves robust construction (such as school buses having full body and steel frame), large seating capacity, and wheelchair lift capabilities, among others.
In law enforcement
Larger police agencies can have their own police buses for a number of purposes that come from the school bus body. Together with a bus with a high capacity seating that serves as an officer's transport (on a large scale), other vehicles coming from the bus may have little seating, serving as a temporary mobile command center; The vehicle is built from the school bus bodyshells and is equipped with agency-determined equipment.
The captive transport vehicle is a high security vehicle used to transport prisoners; the school bus bodyshell is equipped with specially designed interior and exterior with safe windows and doors.
Within community reach
In the case of vehicles used for community outreach, school bus bodyshells (both new and used) can be used as bookstores and bloodmobiles, among other uses. Bookmobiles features an interior shelf for library books and equipment; bloodmobiles has a cellular phlebotomy station and blood storage.
Both types of vehicles spend a long time in the same place; to reduce fuel consumption, they often have on-board power generators to turn on their interior equipment and climate controls.
In church use
Churches throughout the United States and Canada use buses to transport their members, either to church services or to church functions. In this capacity, many churches use vehicles based on school buses. Some churches have school buses purchased directly, while other churches have new purchased vehicles (other churches have minibuses with wheelchair lifts).
In almost all cases, federal regulations require the removal of the letters "School Bus" and deactivation/removal of warning weapons/warning lights. In some states, buses are required to change the color of the Yellow Bus School entirely. In the use of churches, transporting adults and/or children, traffic laws no longer give priority to bus traffic in many countries (Alabama, Arkansas, Kentucky, Tennessee, and Virginia being the only state where church buses can stop traffic with blinking red lights).
Use of retired school bus
By 2016, the average age of school buses in the United States is 9.3 years. School buses can be retired from services due to a number of factors, including vehicle age or mileage, mechanical conditions, emission compliance, or a combination of these factors. In some states and provinces, retirement school buses come in called at a certain age or interval mileage, regardless of mechanical conditions. In recent years, budget concerns in many publicly funded school districts require school buses to be maintained for longer.
When school buses retire from school, can see a variety of uses. While most are eliminated for parts and recycling (requirements in some states), a better example is put up for sale as a surplus vehicle. Used school buses are sold to entities such as churches, resorts or summer camps; others are exported to Central America, South America, or elsewhere. Other examples of retired school buses are preserved and restored by bus collectors and fans; collectors and museums have an interest in older and more rare models. In addition, the restored school buses appear alongside other period vehicles on television or in movies.
After school buses are sold, NHTSA regulations require that the school bus stop and bus alert warning signs be removed or disabled. If the bus is to transport passengers, the exterior should be painted in color other than the yellow school bus and all the school bus letters should be removed.
Convert school bus
In retirement, not all school buses live as transportation vehicles. In contrast, school bus buyers use large bodies and chassis to use either as a functioning vehicle, or as a basis for building a rotating home. To build a utility vehicle for agriculture, the owner often removes many roofs and sides, creating a large flatbed or open truck for transporting straw. Other farms use school buses that have not been re-marked, repainted, to transport their workforce.
Skoolies are retired school buses converted into recreational vehicles (this term also applies to owners and their fans). While some examples are quite primitive, others rival the artificial production RV in equipment and quality. The exterior can range from a conservative design to a bus equivalent of an art car.
Examples of school buses converted into RVs were the 1948 International Harvester school buses left on the Stampede Trail in Alaska where Christopher McCandless lived and died in 1992 (often referred to as the "Magic School Bus").
Export school bus
Retirement school buses from Canada and the United States are sometimes exported to Africa, Central America, South America, or elsewhere. Used as public transport between communities, these buses are nicknamed "chicken buses" for their crowded accommodation and occasional cattle transportation with passengers. To attract passengers (and fares), the yellow buses are often repainted with a flamboyant exterior color scheme and modified with chrome exterior trim.
Worldwide
Outside North America, yellow school buses are not common; buses used for student transport purposes are usually closer in design to public transport buses. These buses may be painted in yellow or other similar colors, but the yellow school buses are not government specifications such as on school buses from the United States or Canada and are generally seen only on buses imported from North America. School buses outside North America typically have no traffic priority when loading or unpacking students; the law stops school bus traffic differently from North American colleagues (if they exist at all).
Asia
Mainland China
In mainland China, vehicles built specifically for transporting school children are not commonly used. Due to lack of buses and lack of regulation, excessive bus loading with children in China for school routes is common. As a result, accidents happen frequently.
Some Chinese bus manufacturers, such as Zhengzhou Yutong Group Co., Ltd., developed a school bus model, ZK6100DA, to be purchased by schools in China. It was described as a "big school bus-nose" with a "western classic style" by an online newspaper. FAW developed a similar CA6750. Both school buses have about 35 passengers. In addition to the large school buses, minibuses are sold by Chengdu and Maxus; The school bus accommodates 16 to 24 passengers.
In February 2012, the potential of American imported school buses was explored when the American manufacturer of Blue Bird and IC Bus (Navistar) displayed buses at the Beijing bus trade show.
Hong Kong
In Hong Kong, younger students are transported between their home and school with "nanny vans". These vehicles are usually van-based and smaller than minibuses. When the nanny van originated, they were organized mainly by schools and van drivers. Today, for the sake of safety, nanny vans are government-governed vehicles that run on fixed routes.
Singapore
In Singapore, student transport by bus is usually provided by local scheduled public transport bus services, such as services 31, 72, 88, 179 and 199; as well as various train services. Special bus services for school students are usually contracted out to local bus companies, using regular buses used for other purposes when not used for school trips.
Examples of school buses used in Singapore include:
Europe
German
In Germany, students travel to schools with general train schedules and bus routes. In many cases, these services operate at school hours and do not run during weekends and vacation periods, although the service is open for use by unrelated travelers. Local authorities subsidize routes but parents or guardians are required to pay contributions to season ticket costs for service use. Many scholars are using their own bicycles to travel to school and can take it with them when part of the journey is done by train.
Because student transport relies heavily on public transport systems in urban areas, most students are transported by mass transit bus or intercity with a supportive minibus. To distinguish themselves from other buses, the route carrying the student must have a destination mark with the word "Schulbus" with a yellow background. German traffic law gives traffic priority to school buses that unload and load students; school buses to alert traffic using their four-way hazard lights.
The maximum speed for German school buses varies. While the trainer is usually limited to 80 kilometers per hour (50 mph), every bus with passengers stands limited to 60 kilometers per hour (37 mph).
Italy
In Italy, school buses are usually painted yellow or orange. Vehicles used to transport students are usually minibuses or midibuses. As in North America, school buses run on fixed routes and stop.
While the only legal requirement is to transport student buses to Materne (preschool), the school bus driver is provided with an assistant to manage students on the bus.
Polish
In Poland, school buses are used in the same way as in the United States, to connect rural populations to remote schools. Although officially write autobus szkolny (Polish for "school bus"), they are known everyday as gimbus .
Together with their North American counterparts, the school bus in Poland has several design features to distinguish it from standard buses. First, all school buses are painted orange. Inside, the driver compartment is not blocked from the passenger compartment; However, any back door should be locked by the driver. All doors must lock at speeds above 5 kilometers per hour (3.1 mph).
Russian
In a similar way to a school bus in North America, school buses in Russia are allowed to stop traffic (with lights and alarms) when loading and dropping students at the bus stop. The school bus driver was also accompanied by the maids, who were given their own seats on the bus; The bus also has an onboard luggage room.
School bus carrying children identified with words ????????? ????? (Transporting Children). All school buses are limited to a maximum speed of 60 kilometers per hour (37 mph).
Prior to 1999, buses intended to transport schoolchildren differed only in route identification; no government regulation is required. In 2001, the Russian government began to acquire special school buses, mainly to transport students in rural areas.
Ukraine
As in many other countries, in Ukraine, school buses are painted yellow or orange. In the Ukrainian school bus called "?????????????".
United Kingdom
In the United Kingdom, student transportation by bus is usually provided by local scheduled public transport bus services. Special bus services for school students are usually contracted out to local bus companies, using regular buses used for other purposes when not used for school trips.
During the 1990s, local governments began to build a special network of school bus services. To replace the Leyland-level bus in the early 1980s, Blue Bird school bus drive right was imported from the United States. In the private sector, in 2000, FirstGroup launched First Student UK, using a yellow school bus livery similar to an American school bus. Although initially using the Blue Bird TC/2000s right-hand drive imported from the United States, the company switched to BMC 1100 buses manufactured in Turkey in the 2000s.
MyBus is a group of bus contractors (including First Student UK) who use school buses solely for school transportation. Buses are equipped with seat belts, and full-time drivers are assigned to each route.
Along with the import of American right-hand drive vehicles and school buses produced by BMC, from 2006 to 2008, Wrightbus (from Irlandi
Source of the article : Wikipedia
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