Interpretation ID: nht78-4.33

DATE: March 27, 1978

FROM: Joseph J. Levin, Jr. - Chief Counsel, NHTSA

TO: Bill Nanninga -- Division of Planning, Wisconsin Department of Transportation

TITLE: None

ATTACHMT: Attached to letter dated 8-3-77 from J.J. Levin, Jr. to J.L. O'Connell (VSA 102(14)); Also attached to letter dated 7-12-77 from J.J. Levin, Jr. to J. Thomason (VSA 102(14)); Also attached to letter dated 9-10-90 from P.J. Rice to E. Kultgen (A36; VSA 108(b)(1)); VSA 102 (14); Part 571.3); Also attached to letter dated 5-29-90 from E. Kultgen to S.P. Wood (OCC 4843); Also attached to letter dated 5-10-82 from F. Berndt (signature by S.P. Wood) to M.V. Chauvin

TEXT:

This confirms your March 13, 1978, conversation with Roger Tilton of my staff concerning the applicability of the Federal school bus safety standards to buses designed to transport handicapped adults or other adults to training or rehabilitation facilities. Such vehicles are not considered school buses for purposes of the application of Federal school bus safety standards and would not have to comply with those standards.

You indicated that a state law requires that these buses be labeled school buses although they are not painted school bus yellow nor used to transport school children to and from school or related events. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) discourages the use of the label school bus on vehicles that are not used to transport school children. Further, although the agency would not consider these vehicles to be school buses and would not require their compliance with school bus safety standards, you will probably find very few manufacturers who are willing to mark a bus as a school bus without manufacturing it in compliance with the standards, because the use of such a vehicle as a school bus would subject the manufacturer to liability.