1.Every school bus except private passenger vehicles used as school buses shall be
constructed and equipped to meet safety standards prescribed in rules adopted by the state
board of education. Such rules shall conform to safety standards set forth in federal laws and
regulations and shall conform, insofar as practicable, to the minimum standards for school
buses recommended by the national conference on school transportation administered
by the national commission on safety education and published by the national education
association.
2.Rules prescribed for school buses shall provide standards for structural strength,
materials, and insulation of the school bus body; color; seat and aisle arrangement;
dimension and construction of service door; control of the front door or doors; emerg
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1. Every school bus except private passenger vehicles used as school buses shall be
constructed and equipped to meet safety standards prescribed in rules adopted by the state
board of education. Such rules shall conform to safety standards set forth in federal laws and
regulations and shall conform, insofar as practicable, to the minimum standards for school
buses recommended by the national conference on school transportation administered
by the national commission on safety education and published by the national education
association.
2. Rules prescribed for school buses shall provide standards for structural strength,
materials, and insulation of the school bus body; color; seat and aisle arrangement;
dimension and construction of service door; control of the front door or doors; emergency
door and its location and construction; windows; roof ventilators; heaters; location, filling,
and draining of the fuel tank; bumpers and how they shall be attached to the bus; lettering
and identification of the bus; stop signal arm; warning lights and flashing lights.
3. a. The rules prescribed for school buses shall include special rules for passenger
automobiles, and other vehicles designed to carry ten or fewer persons, including the driver,
when used as school buses.
b. The rules shall allow pickups designed to carry nine passengers or less, including the
driver, and weighing ten thousand pounds or less, to be used as school buses if the pickup
doesnotcarrymorepassengersthantherearesafetybeltsorsafetyharnessesinthepickupas
installedbythemanufacturerandifthepickupisnotoperatedwhileanypassengerispresent
in the bed of the pickup. The operator of the pickup shall comply with the qualification,
licensing, and instruction requirements set forth in sections 321.375 and 321.376, other than
the requirement to obtain a commercial driver’s license. However, the rules shall allow the
board of directors of a school district to prohibit the use of pickups as school buses by the
school district.
c. The rules shall allow used passenger vans designed to carry twelve or fewer
passengers, including the driver, and weighing ten thousand pounds or less, to be used as
school buses if the van does not carry more passengers than there are safety belts or safety
harnesses in the van as installed by the manufacturer. The operator of the van shall comply
with the qualification, licensing, and instruction requirements set forth in sections 321.375
and 321.376.
d. A pickup or passenger van operated pursuant to rules described in paragraph “b” or
“c” is subject to the limitations set forth in section 321.1, subsection 69, paragraph “d”.
4. Every school bus shall be equipped with a comfortable seat for each child.
5. Vehicles owned by private parties and used as school buses shall have reversed or
covered the words “school bus” wherever they appear on the vehicle when the vehicle is not
in use as a school bus. It shall be unlawful to operate flashing stop warning signals on such
privately owned vehicles except as provided in section 321.372.
6. No vehicle except a school bus shall be operated on a public highway if the vehicle is
painted the color known as national school bus glossy yellow. A school bus which has been
permanently converted for a purpose other than transporting pupils to or from school shall
be painted a color other than national school bus glossy yellow, and shall have the “school
bus” signs, stop arm, and the special signal lamps removed.
7. A school bus may be equipped with a white flashing strobe light mounted on the roof
of the bus to afford optimum visibility during periods of inclement weather. The light shall be
installed and operated in accordance with rules promulgated by the department of education.
Each new school bus put into initial service after January 1, 1977, shall be equipped with such
a light.
8. A person who violates this section commits a simple misdemeanor.