Illinois Administrative Code › Title 92 - TRANSPORTATION › Part 556 - TRANSPORTING PUPILS WHERE WALKING CONSTITUTES A SERIOUS SAFETY HAZARD › Section 556.170 - Procedures

Current through Register Vol. 48, No. 28, July 12, 2024
a) Determination by
			 local school board.
The determination by a local school board that a serious safety
				hazard exists or does not exist shall be made in accordance with this Part, and
				on a form promulgated by the Department. A separate form is required for each
				location and not for each pupil. A school board's determination shall be
				supported by findings on those factors that were found to contribute to the
				hazard. Findings shall be indicated by completion of appropriate portions of
				the submittal form. Example: Speed of traffic (45 m.p.h.). Volume of traffic
				(900 vehicles/hour). Length of hazardous section (1.2 miles). Each submittal
				shall be certified true and correct by an authorized representative of the
				school board making the submission. Long-term construction projects may have an
				effect on the safety of a route used by pupils walking to and from school. This
				could include increases in the hourly volumes of traffic, a change in the
				length of a hazardous section or a relocation of a walkway. Consideration of
				these factors may result in a serious safety hazard finding for a route that
				would not otherwise qualify for such a finding. Where this is the case, a
				temporary safety hazard determination may be made on a school year by school
				year basis. The decision to conduct a serious safety hazard study in accordance
				with this Part may be made independently by the school board. However, such a
				study is required to be made by the school board when requested in writing to
				do so by a parent or guardian of a pupil who must walk along the route in
				question.
b) Submission of
			 determination. A school board shall submit the determination form and a map
			 showing the location of the hazard and the route walked by the pupils to the
			 Department for review. The submittal may include other materials, such as
			 photographs, the school board believes will aid in the Department's review. All
			 parts of the submittal shall be in documentary form. A school board shall make
			 its submission to the Department's District Office in which the school district
			 is situated. A school board need not submit forms to the Department that do not
			 support a finding of a serious safety hazard unless requested in writing to do
			 so by a custodian of a pupil who must walk along the route in
			 question.
c) Department review.
1) Within 30 days after submission, the
			 Department will approve or disapprove the school board's determination. If a
			 submittal is incomplete, the Department will disapprove without prejudice and
			 inform the school district why it is considered incomplete. If a submittal is
			 complete, it will be reviewed by the District Office. Each form will be
			 considered as a separate submission and an incomplete submittal will not delay
			 approval of others submitted at the same time.
2) The Department's review will consist of
			 those procedures appropriate to determine the correctness of the findings. The
			 procedures may include the following: visiting the route in question,
			 consulting traffic count records or counting vehicles, measuring length and
			 width of roadways, observing train movements and obtaining train speeds from
			 railroads, regulatory authorities or law enforcement officials. The persons
			 conducting the review will document the procedures employed and information
			 obtained.
3) If a determination is
			 disapproved, the Department will, in writing, inform the school board why and
			 upon what information the Department's decision was based. A determination will
			 not be disapproved because judgment points were not justified unless the school
			 board gives no reason for the judgment points or unless the reason given is
			 completely implausible or obviously not related to vehicular traffic.
4) A disapproved determination may not be
			 resubmitted for Department review during the same school year in which it was
			 originally submitted, unless conditions have changed. However, a determination
			 that is disapproved because of incompleteness may be resubmitted at any
			 time.