Virginia considers changing rules on school buses

Teachers of the Year

With the start of the school year just around the corner, Virginia is considering changes to its pupil-transportation rules to improve school bus safety.

The Virginia Department of Education is looking at regulations to prevent students from standing in the aisles, to cap bus drivers' hours and to change the way crashes involving school buses are reported.

The department is seeking comments on the proposed regulations, with public hearings scheduled Sept. 24 at schools in Salem, Springfield and Chesapeake.

If the regulations are approved, it could be the 2010-11 school year before they're implemented, Department of Education spokesman Charles Pyle said.

One of the changes would require school divisions to report a crash to the Department of Education if damage to any vehicle involved totals at least $1,000, or if someone is injured.

Currently, divisions have to report crashes with damage of less than $1,000 as "incidents." Pyle said the department heard from school divisions that "the threshold for reporting an accident was too low."

The department also would be required to report annually on school bus and activity bus crashes, which they currently are not required to do.

"This is to provide some transparency," Pyle said of the annual report. "If [school divisions] fail to report, that would be something that the public could see."

Among the other proposed changes and additions:

• Students would be prohibited from standing in the aisles on buses except during temporary emergency situations and for short distances, and these occasions must be determined and approved by local school boards.

Students currently are allowed to stand in the aisles for short distances during the first 30 days of the school year. That gives divisions time to accommodate unexpected increases in student riders at the start of the year.

• Bus drivers and activity bus drivers would be prohibited from driving more than 13 hours in a 24-hour period. This follows a state law.

• High school students who drive to school would receive training on how to approach stopped school buses as well as on safe following distances.

• School officials would be required to review bus stops and bus routes once each semester. Currently, they are required to review them once each year.

Michael Ashby, transportation director for Hanover County schools, said some of the proposed regulations back up what drivers already are doing, such as the regulation about students standing in aisles.

Additionally, he said the time limit on drivers' hours is for everyone's safety. Though most bus drivers won't come close to driving 13 hours on a typical school day, he said, there are some who may drive for field trips or sports activities after the school day or on weekends.

Lisa Drinkwater, a bus driver in Henrico County for 22 years, said the proposal to keep students in their seats makes sense.

"It's a distraction when they're standing up" in the aisles, and when there are too many children on a bus, "we're advised to let [school officials] know immediately," she said.

She also said the proposed reporting procedures about crashes may "cut down on a lot of red tape and paperwork."

"I think that's a sensible thing to do," she said.

Contact Holly Prestidge at (804) 649-6945 or .