Vans, Belts, and Des Moines Charlie Hood, NASDPTS Executive
Director February 12, 2015 FAPT Mid-year Directors Meeting
Tallahassee, Florida
Slide 2
Vans No, Buses Yes, and more... NHTSA regulations prohibit a
school or school system from purchasing or leasing a new 15-
passenger van "if it will be used significantly by or on behalf of
the school or school system to transport preprimary, primary, or
secondary school students to and from school or an event related to
school, unless the 15- passenger van complies with the motor
vehicle standards prescribed for school buses and multifunction
school activity buses."
Slide 3
NASDPTS Survey on Vehicles Conducted in January 2015 Reported
types of vehicles allowed for student transport in the 40 states
responding Not surprisingly, all 40 states allow the use of School
Buses for nearly all public student transportation. Four states
allow Activity Buses to be used for regular home-school-home
transportation, while 18 allow them for curriculum-related trips,
and 21 for non-curricular field or activity trips.
Slide 4
NASDPTS Survey on Vehicle Used Three states allow MFSABs to be
used for regular home-school-home transportation, while 19 allow
them for curriculum-related trips, and 22 for non-curricular field
or activity trips. Five states allow Full-size Vans to be used for
regular home-school-home transportation, while 9 allow them for
curriculum-related trips, and 10 for non-curricular field or
activity trips. Three states allow Motor Coaches to be used for
regular home-school-home transportation, while 18 allow them for
curriculum-related trips, and 32 for non-curricular field or
activity trips.
Slide 5
NASDPTS Survey on Vehicle Used Seventeen states allow Public
Transit Buses to be used for regular home-school-home
transportation, while 12 allow them for curriculum-related trips,
and 12 for non-curricular field or activity trips. Twenty three
states allow Passenger Cars, MPVs, or Light Trucks to be used for
regular home-school-home transportation, while 26 allow them for
curriculum- related trips, and 30 for non-curricular trips. The
survey did not attempt to assess allowable use of different vehicle
types by private individuals, such as parents, who are not
operating their vehicles under the authority of a school or school
district.
Slide 6
Home-School-Home Trips
Slide 7
Curricular Trips-NON Home-School- Home
Slide 8
Extracurricular Field and Activity Trips
Slide 9
Belts (here we go again?) NASDPTS released updated position
Feb. 2014 The Equipping and Use of Passenger Lap/shoulder belts in
School Buses Considered findings and recommendations of NTSB on two
2012 school bus crashes, Chesterfield, NJ and Port St. Lucie, FL
NTSB said, Provide your members with educational materials on lap
and shoulder belts providing the highest level of protection for
school bus passengers, and advise states or school districts to
consider this added safety benefit when purchasing seat
belt-equipped school buses.
Slide 10
NASDPTS Position NASDPTS fully supports state and local
decisions for the installation and use of lap/shoulder belts in
school buses. NASDPTS is not advocating that the installation
and/or use of lap/shoulder belts be required by state or local
jurisdictions without thorough consideration of available
resources. States and local jurisdictions should require proper
usage by all students when belts are available and should provide
related notices, training and enforcement.
Slide 11
NASDPTS Position NASDPTS is not advocating that the
installation and/or use of lap-shoulder belts be required. NASDPTS
believes this should be a local decision based on local need, but
also believes lap/shoulder belt equipped seats should be encouraged
as an option when considering new bus original equipment. Should a
state or local district decide to equip their buses with
lap-shoulder belts, NASDPTS believes a mandatory usage policy
should also be in place along with necessary training on the
importance of wearing and proper usage of the belts along with
proper evacuation training. NASDPTS supports the NHTSA position
that this local decision should not be done at the expense of
students being displaced from school bus transportation.
Slide 12
Whats NHTSA Up To? New Administrator, Dr. Mark Rosekind stated
on January 30, 2015 that NHTSA will take another look at the issue
of belts in large school buses. Dr. Rosekind spoke on ABC Good
Morning America GMA; video segment is at:
http://abcnews.go.com/GMA/video/gma-
investigates-putting-seatbelts-school-buses- save-kids-28603493
http://abcnews.go.com/GMA/video/gma-
investigates-putting-seatbelts-school-buses-
save-kids-28603493
Slide 13
Should Florida Readdress the Issue? FAPT Position Paper written
in 2005, before availability of newer lap/shoulder belt technology
Section 316.6145 and FL specs still require two-point lap belts
Would Florida Legislature increase student transportation funding
if L/S belts were the carrot? FAPT might want to take the lead,
IMHO.
Slide 14
Slide 15
16 th NCST Murrell Martin, Western Regional Director, is NCST
Steering Committee Chair 2015 Congress will mark 75 th anniversary
of this unique and important process State delegations have been
selected NASDPTS has submitted its NTSB changes
Slide 16
Des Moines or Bust! Floridas delegation to the 16 th NCST will
be led by Ronnie McCallister Writing Committees are finalizing
proposals As it becomes available all information is being posted
to www.NCTSOnline.orgwww.NCTSOnline.org
Slide 17
Other NASDPTS Activities Bob Riley left big shoes to fill.
Email addresses the same; e.g., [email protected] (Charlie Hood)
[email protected] New phone number: 850-274-4308 New address:
8205 Bristol Court, Tallahassee, FL 32311 Relatively seamless
transition, although large learning curve Parent calls??? You
bet!
Slide 18
Social Media www.facebook.com/nasdpts
https://twitter.com/nasdpts https://twitter.com/nasdpts
(@NASDPTS)
Slide 19
Media Contacts- Various responses to media inquiries, e.g.:
Weather Channel interview re: Safety Week Philadelphia Inquirer
response on school bus service cutbacks NPR Marketplace response on
student data security Associated Press response on South Carolina
photo enforcement School Bus Fleet and STN
Slide 20
4 th Annual Illegal Passing Survey Completed annually since
2011 to document incidence of this well known safety threat 2014
survey results: 97K drivers in 29 states participated 76K motorists
illegally passed stopped buses
Slide 21
School Bus Manufacturers Technical Council SBMTC is meeting
this week Issued response on June 19, 2014 to NTSB Safety
Recommendation H-13-37, regarding seating systems integrity (from
2012 crashes in Chesterfield, NJ, and Port St. Lucie, FL) NTSB
recommendation to ensure the structural integrity of the entire
school bus seating and restraint system (primarily, lateral
integrity of seat bottom cushion) SBMTC Response, in summary, was
that it will request an update to the National School
Transportation Specifications & Procedures for pre- and
post-trip inspections of seat securement
Slide 22
ASBC Mission is to promote the importance of yellow school bus
ridership, for safety, environmental benefits, and access to
education Council meets 4 times per year Developed infographics,
posters, other materials, and compiled data for NHTSA Tradeshow
participation and Champions awards Love the Bus, Back to School
Tour, and other activities with US Ed. Dept. and other agencies
Weekly calls among NSTA, NAPT, NASDPTS, OEM
Slide 23
Position Papers Position issued in 2014 supporting
consideration by states and LEAs of lap/shoulder belts in new buses
NASDPTS will soon be reviewing and updating other existing reports,
such as Student Transportation Security, Repair and Replacement of
Components on School Buses, and others.
Slide 24
State and National Associations Council (SNAC) SNAC members are
key partners with state directors and suppliers Primary conduit for
important school bus safety information in many states Encourage
SNAC to share NASDPTS resources with all their respective members
back in their states
Slide 25
Supplier Council 64 Supplier Council member companies Key
partners with state directors and the associations School Bus
Manufacturers Technical Council (SBMTC) members (large and small
school bus OEMs) continue to serve as a technical advisors and our
research arm Suppliers routinely assist us with state
specifications, training, and other areas
Slide 26
Federal Agencies Involvement EPA- DERA, including recently
announced renewal of school bus rebate program at $3M NTSB-
Continued positive partnership; following up on response to
Chesterfield, NJ/Port St. Lucie crash recommendations FMCSA-
National Registry; obstructive sleep apnea; drug and alcohol
national clearinghouse, entry level driver training US Education
Department
Slide 27
Federal Agencies Involvement Transportation Research Board-
NASDPTS will again be represented at January meeting and involved
in ongoing dialogue on importance of school bus mode, including new
study of the history and state of school bus occupant protection
NHTSA- Rear Impact Protection rulemaking (FR, 7-10-14); study on
effectiveness of photo enforcement camera systems for illegal
passing; Office of Defects Investigation; motor coach rollover
Slide 28
Federal Agencies Involvement Transportation Security
Administration- continued participation in security tele-
conferences, School Transportation Security Awareness, School Bus
First Observer, Security Action Items (SAIs), I-STEP (Intermodal
Security Training Exercise Program), BASE (Baseline Assessment for
Security Enhancement), and Customer Security Reviews (CSRs)
Slide 29
Other Issues and Ideas Back-to-School- Sample safety tips and
suggestions for activities Speaker Requests Calendar- Developing
calendar for NASDPTS website on industry and state events Operation
Lifesaver- Reviewing new e- learning module with other associations
Safe Routes to School- Continued collaboration with National
Partnership
Slide 30
NASDPTS Website Redesigned in 2010, subject based Updates and
ongoing maintenance Working to improve members-only access
www.NASDPTS.org
Slide 31
Thanks to you, our members the state directors, associations
like FAPT, and suppliers! Input? Suggestions? Comments?
Questions?