Interpretation ID: nht80-4.8

DATE: 10/03/80

FROM: FRANK BERNDT -- CHIEF COUNSEL, NHTSA; SIGNATURE BY STEPHEN P. WOOD

TO: Department of Transportation

TITLE: FMVSR INTERPRETATION

TEXT: This responds to your August 5, 1980, letter asking why it might not be possible for a manufacturer to certify a vehicle in compliance with the school bus safety standards if that vehicle transports 10 persons or less. You state that you would like the smaller sized vehicles to be constructed with the same safety features as larger school buses.

First, we would like to note that the school bus safety standards were originally applied only to the larger sized vehicles (more than 10 persons) because the larger sized vehicles were not previously required to comply with many of our safety standards. On the other hand, most of our standards apply to vehicles transporting 10 persons or less. Since these small vehicles were extensively regulated it was determined to be unnecessary to apply school bus safety standards to them.

In response to your particular question, a vehicle transporting 10 persons or less is a multipurpose passenger vehicle (MPV), not a bus or a school bus. A manufacturer is required by this agency to certify such a vehicle in compliance with the safety standards applicable to multipurpose passenger vehicles. This certification statement must be made on the vehicle's certification label. Therefore, a manufacturer cannot certify a vehicle as a school bus in compliance with the school bus safety standards unless the vehicle is of a size that puts it within the school bus category (more than 10 persons).

New York should not attempt to issue a regulation that would require multipurpose passenger vehicles to comply with all school bus safety standards. Some of those standards might conflict with other Federal safety standards applicable to MPV's and would, therefore, be preempted. For example, the school bus seating standard could not be applied to MPV's because their seating is regulated by other Federal safety because their seating is regulated by other Federal safety standards. However, since MPV's are not presently regulated in the areas of emergency exists, joint strength, or roof crush, New York could have a regulation requiring MPV's used to transport children to comply with these performance standards now applicable only to school buses. The vehicles would still be required to be certified only to the safety standards applicable to MPV's however.