Interpretation ID: 1982-1.18

TYPE: INTERPRETATION-NHTSA

DATE: 02/25/82

FROM: AUTHOR UNAVAILABLE; S. P. Wood for F. Berndt; NHTSA

TO: Indiana Mills & Manufacturing, Inc.

TITLE: FMVSS INTERPRETATION

TEXT: This responds to your recent letter asking whether paragraph S4.2.2 of Safety Standard No. 208, Occupant Crash Protection, is applicable to school buses with a GVWR of 10,000 pounds or less.

The answer to your question is yes. Safety Standard No. 222 specifies in paragraph S5(b) that all seats, other than the driver's seat, in school buses with a GVWR of 10,000 or less shall meet the requirements of Safety Standard No. 208 as they apply to multipurpose passenger vehicles. The requirements for multipurpose passenger vehicles in Standard No. 208 are found in paragraph S4.2.2 for vehicles manufactured on or after January 1, 1976. There is no exception in S4.2.2 which allows school buses to comply with S4.2.1.2 of Standard No. 208.

School buses are not specifically mentioned in paragraph S4.2.2 of Standard 208, because that standard includes separate requirements for buses (including school buses) in paragraph S4.4. Under the general bus requirements of Standard 208, only the driver's position must be equipped with a seat belt. These requirements are supplemented by the more specific provision in Standard No. 222 which, as noted earlier, requires small school buses to meet the requirements of Standard 208 as they apply to multipurpose passenger vehicles.

I hope this has clarified your understanding of the requirements of these two standards. Please contact Hugh Oates of my staff if you have any additional questions (202-426-2992).

Sincerely,

ATTACH.

December 1, 1981

Frank Berndt, Chief Counsel -- National Highway Traffic Safety Administration

Dear Sir:

Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard 222, "School Bus Passenger Seating and Crash Protection" requires school buses with a GVWR of 10,000 lbs. or less to meet the requirements of FMVSS 208 for multi-purpose passenger vehicles at all seating positions other than the driver's seat.

Section 4.2.2 of FMVSS 208 does not specifically refer to school buses. It is our understanding that they are considered an exception under S4.2.2, and may instead meet the requirements of S4.2.1.2.

Please send us your official written opinion regarding the applicability of S4.2.2 of Standard No. 208 to school buses with a GVWR of 10,000 lbs. or less.

We appreciate your assistance.

Yours very truly, William E. Lawler -- Specifications Manager, INDIANA MILLS & MANUFACTURING, INC.