(625 ILCS 5/12-811) (from Ch. 95 1/2, par. 12-811)
Sec. 12-811.
Amber 3 bar clearance light.
Each type I school bus
shall be equipped with an amber 3 bar clearance light on the front of the bus. The
light shall be illuminated at all times when the bus is being operated between
sunset and sunrise and in conditions of reduced visibility.
(Source: P.A. 79-63.)
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(625 ILCS 5/12-812) (from Ch. 95 1/2, par. 12-812)
Sec. 12-812. Rules and regulations. (a) The Department may promulgate rules and regulations to more
completely specify the equipment requirements of this Article and may establish by rule a pilot program to permit the testing of safety equipment not otherwise prohibited by State or federal law.
(b) All rules, regulations and standards promulgated from time to
time by the State Board of Education
and the Department for
the safety and construction of school buses shall be applicable to every
motor vehicle in this State defined as a school bus under Section 1-182.
(Source: P.A. 102-441, eff. 1-1-22 .)
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(625 ILCS 5/12-812.1) (from Ch. 95 1/2, par. 12-812.1)
Sec. 12-812.1.
(a) The Department shall adopt and promulgate rules
and regulations governing the use of liquefied petroleum gases, compressed
natural gases and liquefied natural gases as a propellant fuel in school
buses. Such rules
and regulations
shall include the installation, maintenance and operation of such equipment
installed on school buses and shall be based on the generally accepted standards
of safety as recommended by the National Fire Protection Association.
(b) All school buses using liquefied petroleum gases, compressed natural
gases or liquefied natural gases as a propellant fuel must conform to and
obey any rule or regulation lawfully adopted by the Department.
(Source: P.A. 83-1027.)
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(625 ILCS 5/12-813.1)
Sec. 12-813.1. School bus driver communication devices. (a) In this Section:
"School bus driver" means a person operating a school bus who has a valid
school bus driver permit as required under Sections 6-104 and 6-106.1 of this
Code.
"Cellular radio telecommunication device" means a device capable of sending
or receiving telephone communications without an access line for service and
which requires the operator to dial numbers manually. It does not, however,
include citizens band radios or citizens band radio hybrids.
"Possession of a school bus" means the period of time from which a bus driver takes possession until the school bus driver returns possession of the school bus, whether or not the school bus driver is operating the school bus. "Using a cellular radio telecommunication device" means talking or listening
to or dialing a cellular radio telecommunication device.
To "operate" means to have the vehicle in motion while it contains one or
more passengers.
(b) A school bus driver may not operate a school bus while using a cellular
radio telecommunication device.
(c) Subsection (b) of this Section does not apply:
(1) To the use of a cellular radio telecommunication | ||
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(A) an emergency response operator;
(B) a hospital;
(C) a
physician's office or health clinic;
(D) an ambulance service;
(E) a fire department, fire district, or fire | ||
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(F) a police department.
(2) To the use of a cellular radio telecommunication | ||
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(3) (Blank).
(4) When the school bus is parked.
(d) A school bus driver who violates subsection (b) of this Section is guilty of a petty
offense punishable by a fine of not less than $100 and not more than $250.
(e) A school bus must contain either an operating cellular radio telecommunication device or two-way
radio while the school bus driver is in possession of a school bus. The cellular radio telecommunication device or two-way radio in this subsection must be turned on and adjusted in a manner that would alert the school bus driver of an incoming communication request. (Source: P.A. 96-818, eff. 11-17-09; 96-1066, eff. 7-16-10.)
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(625 ILCS 5/12-815) (from Ch. 95 1/2, par. 12-815)
Sec. 12-815. Strobe lamp on school bus.
(a) A school bus manufactured prior to January 1, 2000 may
be equipped with one strobe lamp that
will emit 60
to 120 flashes per minute of white or bluish-white light visible to a
motorist approaching the bus from any direction.
A school bus
manufactured on or after January 1, 2000 shall be equipped with one strobe lamp that will emit 60 to
120 flashes
per minute of white or bluish-white light visible to a motorist approaching the
bus from
any direction.
The lamp shall be of
sufficient brightness to be visible in normal sunlight when viewed directly
from a distance of at least one mile.
(b) The strobe lamp shall be mounted on the rooftop of the bus with the
light generating element in the lamp located equidistant from each side
and either at or behind the center of the rooftop. The maximum height of
the element above the rooftop shall not exceed 1/30 of its distance from
the rear of the rooftop. If the structure of the strobe lamp obscures the
light generating element, the element shall be deemed to be in the center
of the lamp with a maximum height 1/4 inch less than the maximum height
of the strobe lamp unless otherwise indicated in rules and regulations
promulgated by the Department. The Department may promulgate rules and
regulations to govern measurements, glare, effectiveness and protection of
strobe lamps on school buses, including higher strobe lamps than authorized
in this paragraph.
(c) The strobe lamp may be lighted only when the school bus is
actually
being used as a school bus and:
1. is stopping or stopped for loading or discharging | ||
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2. is bearing one or more pupils.
(Source: P.A. 95-319, eff. 8-21-07.)
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(625 ILCS 5/12-815.1)
Sec. 12-815.1.
Emergency exits identification.
On and after August 1, 2000,
all emergency exits of a
school bus shall be outlined around the perimeter of the exit with a minimum
one inch wide yellow reflective tape or decal. This yellow reflective tape or
decal shall be placed on the exterior surface of the school bus.
(Source: P.A. 91-168, eff. 1-1-00; 91-785, eff. 6-9-00.)
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(625 ILCS 5/12-815.2) Sec. 12-815.2. Noise suppression switch. Any school bus manufactured on or after January 1, 2006 must be equipped with a noise suppression switch capable of turning off noise producing accessories, including: heater blowers; defroster fans; auxiliary fans; and radios. For the purposes of this Section, radios shall not include 2-way radios which transmit Global Positioning System (GPS) location and record metadata stops.
(Source: P.A. 100-667, eff. 1-1-19 .) |
(625 ILCS 5/12-816) Sec. 12-816. Pre and post-trip inspection policy for school buses. (a) In order to provide for the welfare and safety of children who are transported on school buses throughout the State of Illinois, each school district shall have in place, by January 1, 2008, a policy to ensure that the school bus driver is the last person leaving the bus and that no passenger is left behind or remains on the vehicle at the end of a route, a work shift, or the work day. This policy and procedure shall, at a minimum, require the school bus driver (i) to test the cellular radio telecommunication device or two-way radio and ensure that it is functioning properly before the bus is operated and (ii) before leaving the bus at the end of each route, work shift, or work day, to walk to the rear of the bus and check the bus for children or other passengers in the bus. (b) If a school district has a contract with a private sector school bus company for the transportation of the district's students, the school district shall require in the contract with the private sector company that the company have a post-trip inspection policy in place.
This policy and procedure shall, at a minimum, require the school bus driver (i) to test the cellular radio telecommunication device or two-way radio and ensure that it is functioning properly before the bus is operated and (ii) before leaving the bus at the end of each route, work shift, or work day, to walk to the rear of the bus and check the bus for children or other passengers in the bus. (c) Before this inspection, the school bus driver shall activate the interior lights of the bus to assist the driver in seeing in and under the seats during a visual sweep of the bus. (d) This policy may include, at the discretion of the school district, the installation of a mechanical or electronic post-trip inspection reminder system which requires the school bus driver to walk to the rear of the bus to deactivate the system before the driver leaves the bus. The system shall require that when the driver turns off the vehicle's ignition system, the vehicle's interior lights must illuminate to assist the driver in seeing in and under the seats during a visual sweep of the bus.
(Source: P.A. 95-260, eff. 8-17-07; 96-818, eff. 11-17-09; 96-1066, eff. 7-16-10.) |
(625 ILCS 5/12-820) (from Ch. 95 1/2, par. 12-820)
Sec. 12-820.
Nursery school buses.
The Department of Transportation, after conducting a Public Hearing,
may, by regulation,
modify and supplement
the requirements pertaining to seat dimensions, spacing and height from
the floor and to
other safety features in the interior of a school bus used to transport
preschool children,
when such modification or supplementing will enhance the safety of the bus
when transporting
such children.
(Source: P.A. 85-828.)
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(625 ILCS 5/12-821)
Sec. 12-821. Display of telephone number; complaint calls. (a) Each school bus and multifunction school-activity bus shall display at the rear of the bus a sign, with letters and numerals readily visible and readable, indicating the area code and telephone number of the owner of the bus, regardless of whether the owner is a school district or another person or entity. The sign shall be in the following form: "TO COMMENT ON MY DRIVING, CALL (area code and telephone number of bus owner)". A school bus owner who placed a sign conforming to the requirements of Public Act 95-176 on a school bus before January 1, 2010 (the effective date of Public Act 96-655) may continue to use that sign on that school bus rather than a sign that conforms to the requirements of Public Act 96-655; however, if the school bus owner replaces that sign, the replacement sign shall conform to the requirements of Public Act 96-655. (b) The owner of each school bus or multifunction school-activity bus shall establish procedures for accepting the calls provided for under subsection (a) and for taking complaints. (c) The procedures established under subsection (b) shall include, but not be limited to: (1) an internal investigation of the events that led | ||
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(2) a report to the complaining party on the results | ||
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(Source: P.A. 95-176, eff. 1-1-08; 96-410, eff. 7-1-10; 96-655, eff. 1-1-10; 96-1000, eff. 7-2-10.) |
(625 ILCS 5/12-825) Sec. 12-825. Extracurricular activities; passengers. (a) Each school bus operated by a public or private primary or secondary school transporting students enrolled in grade 12 or below for a school related athletic event or other school approved extracurricular activity shall be registered under subsection (a) of Section 3-808 of this Code, comply with school bus driver permit requirements under Section 6-104 of this Code, comply with the minimum liability insurance requirements under Section 12-707.01 of this Code, and comply with special requirements pertaining to school buses under this Chapter. (b) Each school bus that operates under subsection (a) of this Section may be used for the transportation of passengers other than students enrolled in grade 12 or below for activities that do not involve either a public or private educational institution if the school bus driver or school bus owner complies with Section 12-806 of this Code and the "SCHOOL BUS" sign under Section 12-802 of this Code is either removed or obscured so that it is not visible to other motorists.
(Source: P.A. 100-241, eff. 1-1-18; 100-863, eff. 8-14-18.) |
(625 ILCS 5/Ch. 12 Art. IX heading) ARTICLE IX.
SPECIAL REQUIREMENTS FOR
RELIGIOUS ORGANIZATION BUSES
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(625 ILCS 5/12-900) (from Ch. 95 1/2, par. 12-900)
Sec. 12-900.
Color and markings.
Each religious organization bus may be of any color
and have any markings designating its purpose other than those required
for school buses under Article
VIII of this Act.
(Source: P.A. 79-798.)
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(625 ILCS 5/12-901) (from Ch. 95 1/2, par. 12-901)
Sec. 12-901.
Special lighting equipment.
Any religious organization bus may be
equipped with a 4-lamp flashing signal system having unison flashing amber
lamps, 2 at the
front and 2 at the rear of the bus, mounted as high and as widely spaced
laterally on the same
level as is practicable. If such equipment is installed, (a) each lamp must
be a sealed beam at least 5 1/2 inches in diameter and have sufficient intensity
to be visible at
500 feet in normal sunlight, (b) the system shall be actuated only by means
of a manual switch,
and (c) there shall be a device for indicating to the driver that the system
is operating
properly or is inoperative.
(Source: P.A. 79-798.)
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(625 ILCS 5/12-902) (from Ch. 95 1/2, par. 12-902)
Sec. 12-902.
Rules and regulations.
The Department of Transportation
may promulgate rules
and regulations to more completely specify the equipment requirements for
every motor vehicle defined
as a religious organization bus under Section 1-111.1a.
(Source: P.A. 90-89, eff. 1-1-98.)
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