Arizona Administrative Code › Title 13 - PUBLIC SAFETY › Chapter 13 - DEPARTMENT OF PUBLIC SAFETY SCHOOL BUSES › Article 1 - SCHOOL BUS MINIMUM STANDARDS › Section R13-13-104 - Minimum Standards for School Bus Operation

Current through Register Vol. 30, No. 28, July 12, 2024
A. A school bus driver shall perform
				operations checks of a school bus as required by
				R13-13-108.
B. Loading or unloading of passengers:
1. As of February 16, 1996, an eight-lamp
				system as described in
				R13-13-107(17)
				shall be installed on a school bus before it is introduced into Arizona. When
				preparing to stop a school bus on a street or highway, the school bus driver
				shall activate the alternately flashing amber lamps of an eight-lamp system or
				the alternately flashing red lamps of a four-lamp system for a minimum distance
				of 100 feet, in accordance with A.R.S. §
										28-930(B).
				Whenever the school bus is stopped on a street or highway to load or unload
				passengers, the school bus driver shall deactivate the alternately flashing
				amber lamps and activate the alternately flashing red lamps of an eight-lamp
				system, and extend the stop arm and open the service door.
2. When a school bus driver stops the school
				bus to load or unload passengers, the school bus driver shall set the parking
				brake and place the transmission in neutral.
3. The distance between stops for the purpose
				of loading or unloading passengers shall be no less than 600 feet, unless the
				school determines that more frequent stops are necessary for safety. The school
				bus driver shall stop the school bus as near the right edge of the traveled
				portion of the street or highway as possible.
4. A school bus driver shall not load or
				unload passengers on the traffic side of the bus.
5. When a school bus driver loads or unloads
				passengers who must cross a street or highway at a location other than an
				intersection, the passengers shall cross at least 10 feet in front of the front
				bumper of the school bus. The school bus driver shall not permit passengers who
				must cross a street or highway to be unloaded from the school bus until all
				traffic to the front and rear of the school bus is stopped. The school bus
				driver shall not move the school bus until all passengers have crossed the
				street or highway.
6. In
				intersections that use lighted traffic control signals, a school bus driver
				shall load or unload passengers no closer than 100 feet of the traffic control
				signal so the passengers may cross with the traffic control signal, either
				before or after the school bus proceeds.
7. In intersections without lighted traffic
				control signals, a school bus driver shall load or unload passengers no closer
				than 50 feet of the intersection so the passengers may cross at the
				intersection, either before or after the school bus proceeds.
8. A school bus driver shall not stop a
				school bus on an interstate highway for the purpose of loading or unloading
				passengers, except that:
a. A school bus stop
				may be established on a frontage road that parallels an interstate highway if
				no passenger is allowed to cross a divided highway.
b. A school bus may stop in a safety rest
				area as defined by A.R.S. §
											28-7901(8)
				 that is part of or adjacent to an interstate
				highway.
9. A school bus
				driver shall load or unload passengers on school grounds only in an area
				designated by the school and marked with a sign as a school bus loading
				area.
10. During loading or
				unloading of passengers at a designated school bus loading area at a school,
				the school shall restrict the loading area to school buses, passengers, and
				school employees assisting in the loading or unloading of passengers.
11. A school shall allow passengers in a
				designated school bus loading area only when the passengers are being loaded on
				or unloaded from a school bus.
12.
				A school shall designate all school bus loading areas at locations that prevent
				backing of the school bus.
13. In
				areas at a school not designated as a school bus loading area, a school bus
				driver shall not back upon or adjacent to the school grounds unless an
				individual authorized by the school bus driver directs the backing procedure
				while standing at the rear of the school bus in a position visible to the
				school bus driver. This provision does not apply to a school bus garage or
				school bus storage area where passengers are not allowed.
14. Immediately before a school bus driver
				engages in backing a school bus, the school bus driver shall sound the horn to
				warn motorists and pedestrians of the backing procedure. This provision does
				not apply if the school bus is equipped with an alarm that operates
				automatically when the school bus is backing.
15. In addition to the requirements for
				railroad grade crossings contained in A.R.S. §
										28-853,
				a school bus driver shall comply with the following:
a. Use hazard warning lights as described in
				A.R.S. §
											28-947(D)
				 within a minimum of 100 feet of a railroad
				grade crossing to warn motorists of an intended stop.
b. Shut off any radio, compact-disc player,
				and other source of sound within 50 feet of a railroad grade
				crossing.
c. Stop the school bus,
				with or without passengers aboard, at a railroad grade crossing when traffic at
				the railroad grade crossing is not directed by a police officer.
d. While stopped at a railroad grade crossing
				at which traffic is not directed by a police officer, activate the noise
				suppression switch, completely open the service door and the window to the left
				of the driver and, by hearing and sight, determine that it is safe to cross.
				Before proceeding, close the service door. Deactivate the noise suppression
				switch after crossing the tracks.
e. Do not stop to load or unload passengers
				within 200 feet of a railroad grade crossing. This provision does not prohibit
				stops at a railroad station or on a highway that parallels the railroad
				tracks.
16. When a
				school bus driver loads a wheelchair passenger on a school bus, the school bus
				driver shall secure both the wheelchair and the wheelchair passenger using the
				systems described in
				R13-13-105(E).