Interpretation ID: 77-3.43
TYPE: INTERPRETATION-NHTSA
DATE: 08/03/77
FROM: AUTHOR UNAVAILABLE; Joseph J. Levin Jr.; NHTSA
TO: State of Connecticut Department of Motor Vehicles
TITLE: FMVSR INTERPRETATION
TEXT: This responds to your June 7, 1977, letter asking whether a school bus manufacturer can sell a bus to a private school or to a contractor for use in the transportation of the handicapped that is not built in compliance with the new school bus safety standards.
The new school bus definition to which you refer in your letter was issued by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) at the direction of Congress. The definition requires that all buses carrying more than 10 persons to or from school or related events (other than common carriers in urban transportation) must be constructed in accordance with the school bus safety standards.
The buses to which you refer transport children to and from private schools and also transport the handicapped. There is no distinction between private school and public school for purposes of the application of the school bus safety requirements. Accordingly, a bus designed to carry more than 10 persons to and from a private school must be constructed in accordance with the requirements and must be equipped with the lights, paint, and signs of a school bus. The same situation exists for buses designed for the transportation of the handicapped if they carry more than 10 persons to and from school or related events.
In conclusion, a manufacturer is not permitted to sell a bus designed to transport school children to and from school and related events, unless that bus is contructed in accordance with the requirements. Schools may purchase, however, small vehicles (fewer than 10 passenger) that are not built according to the requirements. These vehicles are not considered school buses for purposes of the application of the requirements.
SINCERELY,
STATE OF CONNECTICUT DEPARTMENT OF MOTOR VEHICLES
June 7, 1977
Joseph Levin, Chief Counsel U.S. Dept. of Transportation National Highway Traffic Safety Administration
This is a request for interpretation of the re-definition of the term "school bus" and how it affects current Connecticut statutes. The recent amendment to the definition of "school bus" that appears in 49 CFR 571.3 defines a school bus as a bus that is sold or introduced into interstate commerce, for purposes that include carrying students to and from school and related events, but does not include a bus designed or sold for operation as a common carrier in urban transportation.
Connecticut legislation, specifically Sections 14-275a and 14-275b (copies enclosed) of the Connecticut Motor Vehicle Laws, Title 14, requires the use of a standard school bus. Section 14-275a does not mandate that private schools must provide a school bus when transporting students under the age of 21 years to and from school, and Section 14-275b exempts the use of a standard school bus when transporting the physically handicapped, providing such vehicle has been approved for such purpose by the Commissioner of the Department of Motor Vehicles.
It is my understanding that because of the recent re-definition of a school bus, the manufacturers of school bus bodies and manufacturers of reconstructed van-type vehicles will no longer sell a vehicle to a prospective customer unless that vehicle meets all the requirements of a school bus, including construction, flashing lights, color, and appropriate labeling. Persons responsible for transporting private school students and the handicapped are now restricted from purchasing vehicles other than school buses because of the manufacturers' policies concerning the sale of vehicles used to transport students to and from school.
The interpretation I am requesting is: Can a manufacturer sell a vehicle in Connecticut other than a school bus to a private school or to a contractor for use in the transportation of the physically handicapped, if the manufacturer is aware of its intended use? Your attention and response to this question is appreciated.
John L. O'Connell Pupil Transportation Administrator
[Legislation Omitted]