Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction
Old Capitol Building
P.O. Box 47200
Olympia, WA 98504-7200
To obtain additional copies of this document, please visit our Web site at
http://www.k12.wa.us/transportation/publications.aspx.
It is available in PDF format. Please refer to the document number provided below.
14-0023
OSPI provides equal access to all programs and services without discrimination based
on sex, race, creed, religion, color, national origin, age, honorably discharged veteran or
military status, sexual orientation including gender expression or identity, the presence
of any sensory, mental, or physical disability, or the use of a trained dog guide or
service animal by a person with a disability. Questions and complaints of alleged
discrimination should be directed to the Equity and Civil Rights Director at (360) 725-
6162 or P.O. Box 47200 Olympia, WA 98504-7200.
i
SCHOOL BUS DRIVER HANDBOOK
RANDY I. DORN
State Superintendent of Public Instruction
JOLYNN BERGE
Chief Financial Officer
K–12 Financial
Resources
ALLAN J. JONES
Director
Student Transportation
September 2014
ii
Acknowledgments
This revision of the School Bus Driver Handbook was based on previous versions.
Therefore, it is only right that all those involved in the development of driver handbooks
over the years be acknowledged. Unfortunately, no comprehensive list of those
individuals exists. Isaac Newton said: “If I have seen further, it is by standing on the
shoulders of giants.” Likewise, those who worked on this handbook have been able to
stand on the shoulders of those giants in the field of student transportation in
Washington State. We thank you.
Special mention is reserved for the state driver training committee
and those dedicated professionals,
the regional transportation coordinators of the Educational Service Districts (ESDs):
Rodney McKnight, ESD 112 and ESD 113
Michael Shahan, Puget Sound ESD 121 and Olympic ESD 114
Anna Esquibel, Northwest ESD 189
Dan Payne, ESD 105, ESD 123 and ESD 171
Mike Kenney, Northeast Washington ESD 101
iii
Table of Contents
SCHOOL BUS DRIVER REQUIREMENTS .......................................................................... 1
School Bus Driver Authorization ............................................................................................. 1
Commercial Driver License (CDL) Requirements ................................................................... 5
Drug and Alcohol Testing Requirements ................................................................................ 5
School District Employee Requirements ................................................................................ 8
Expectations and Responsibilities .........................................................................................11
SCHOOL BUS DRIVING REQUIREMENTS ...................................................................... 15
The School Bus Construction and Standards ........................................................................15
Driving Requirements ............................................................................................................16
Fuel Conservation .................................................................................................................21
Rules for Substitutes .............................................................................................................24
Special Trip Requirements ....................................................................................................25
Loading and Unloading .........................................................................................................25
Establishing and Evaluating Safe Bus Stops .........................................................................32
Defensive Driving ..................................................................................................................34
Emergencies .........................................................................................................................39
STUDENT MANAGEMENT ................................................................................................ 45
Harassment...........................................................................................................................49
SPECIAL EDUCATION REQUIREMENTS............................................................................52
RESOURCES ..................................................................................................................... 56
iv
Note on Usage
The Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction (OSPI) has provided this handbook
for distribution to every authorized school bus driver in the state. It is intended to be a
resource for school bus drivers that are in their initial training and for school bus drivers
that have years of experience. It can be used to provide supplementary information to
the complete school bus driver training program, but is not intended to fully cover the
school bus driver training requirements required by Washington Administrative Code
(WAC) 392-144 School Bus Driver Qualifications.
There are many sections of this handbook that emphasize material that is covered in
WAC 392-145 Transportation – Operations Rules. There are many requirements in the
WAC that deal with the responsibilities of school bus drivers. An example is always
having the headlights on while operating a school bus (WAC 392-145-050(8)). This
requirement is not included in the main text of this handbook, since no further
discussion seems necessary. However, school bus drivers must be aware of and
comply with the requirements of the WAC, regardless whether or not a particular
requirement is included for additional discussion within this handbook.
Because this handbook is intended to be used in conjunction with the Commercial
Driver Guide published by the Department of Licensing (DOL), a significant amount of
material that the guide covers regarding defensive driving and the operation of a
commercial vehicle is not repeated here. Every school bus driver should also have a
current copy (paper or electronic) of the Commercial Driver Guide and routinely refresh
their knowledge of its contents.
v
Introduction
Every day in the United States, over 400,000 school buses transport approximately 25
million students between home and school. Collectively, school buses travel 4.3 billion
miles each year. In Washington State, school buses provide over 700,000 student trips
per day and travel over 100 million miles per year. When you consider field trips or
activity trips, nearly every student rides a school bus at some point during the school
year. Student transportation has the best safety record for any mode of ground-based,
passenger transportation. The intent of this manual is to provide the school bus drivers
of Washington State with the information necessary to continue to provide every student
with a safe ride to and from school every day.
This manual provides some of the baseline information you learned when you were first
trained to become a school bus driver. When encountering situations that raise
questions, drivers should look to their local district school bus driver instructors and/or
supervisor for additional assistance.
In Washington State, the majority of school bus drivers are employed directly by school
districts, however, a significant number are employed by private companies contracting
transportation services to school districts. Regardless of the employer, all school bus
drivers operating school buses transporting public school students in the state of
Washington are held to the same stringent qualifications, with the goal of ensuring that
only the “best of the best” are allowed to transport our students. We hope this handbook
will enhance your skills; our State’s dedicated, school bus drivers. Thanks for the great
job you do!
1
SCHOOL BUS DRIVER REQUIREMENTS
School Bus Driver Authorization
Before you can drive students for a public school in Washington State, the school
district you are going to be working for must have you authorized as a school bus driver
by OSPI. The authorization is separate from any requirement related to your driver
license issued by DOL, including the school bus endorsement. You are not issued any
card or certificate indicating that you are an authorized school bus driver. The school
district will make the application once you meet all the requirements. The district is
notified when the authorization is approved.
You must be authorized by each school district you work for as a school bus driver. You
may be working as a substitute driver for a couple of local districts, for instance. In that
case, each district must have you authorized separately. Some districts are set up as
cooperatives and they may choose to handle authorizations in a number of different
ways. While the school district will complete the application process for your school bus
driver authorization, it is your responsibility to ensure you meet the authorization
requirements.
The authorization requirements for school bus drivers are found in WAC 392-144. A link
to all the current rules and regulations can be found in the resource section at the end of
this handbook and is also available on the OSPI Student Transportation webpage at
http://www.k12.wa.us/transportation/
Initial Requirements
The initial authorization requirements for a school bus driver are found in WAC 392-144-
101, and are summarized here:
Have at least five years of experience driving a passenger car.
Complete a Washington State Patrol and a Federal Bureau of Investigation
background record check that does not indicate any disqualifying conditions.
Complete a school bus driver training program overseen by an authorized school
bus driver instructor.
Meet all the continuing requirements for holding a school bus driver
authorization, including a review of a five-year school bus dr
Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction
Old Capitol Building
P.O. Box 47200
Olympia, WA 98504-7200
To obtain additional copies of this document, please visit our Web site at
http://www.k12.wa.us/transportation/publications.aspx.
It is available in PDF format. Please refer to the document number provided below.
14-0023
OSPI provides equal access to all programs and services without discrimination based
on sex, race, creed, religion, color, national origin, age, honorably discharged veteran or
military status, sexual orientation including gender expression or identity, the presence
of any sensory, mental, or physical disability, or the use of a trained dog guide or
service animal by a person with a disability. Questions and complaints of alleged
discrimination should be directed to the Equity and Civil Rights Director at (360) 725-
6162 or P.O. Box 47200 Olympia, WA 98504-7200.
i
SCHOOL BUS DRIVER HANDBOOK
RANDY I. DORN
State Superintendent of Public Instruction
JOLYNN BERGE
Chief Financial Officer
K–12 Financial
Resources
ALLAN J. JONES
Director
Student Transportation
September 2014
ii
Acknowledgments
This revision of the School Bus Driver Handbook was based on previous versions.
Therefore, it is only right that all those involved in the development of driver handbooks
over the years be acknowledged. Unfortunately, no comprehensive list of those
individuals exists. Isaac Newton said: “If I have seen further, it is by standing on the
shoulders of giants.” Likewise, those who worked on this handbook have been able to
stand on the shoulders of those giants in the field of student transportation in
Washington State. We thank you.
Special mention is reserved for the state driver training committee
and those dedicated professionals,
the regional transportation coordinators of the Educational Service Districts (ESDs):
Rodney McKnight, ESD 112 and ESD 113
Michael Shahan, Puget Sound ESD 121 and Olympic ESD 114
Anna Esquibel, Northwest ESD 189
Dan Payne, ESD 105, ESD 123 and ESD 171
Mike Kenney, Northeast Washington ESD 101
iii
Table of Contents
SCHOOL BUS DRIVER REQUIREMENTS .......................................................................... 1
School Bus Driver Authorization ............................................................................................. 1
Commercial Driver License (CDL) Requirements ................................................................... 5
Drug and Alcohol Testing Requirements ................................................................................ 5
School District Employee Requirements ................................................................................ 8
Expectations and Responsibilities .........................................................................................11
SCHOOL BUS DRIVING REQUIREMENTS ...................................................................... 15
The School Bus Construction and Standards ........................................................................15
Driving Requirements ............................................................................................................16
Fuel Conservation .................................................................................................................21
Rules for Substitutes .............................................................................................................24
Special Trip Requirements ....................................................................................................25
Loading and Unloading .........................................................................................................25
Establishing and Evaluating Safe Bus Stops .........................................................................32
Defensive Driving ..................................................................................................................34
Emergencies .........................................................................................................................39
STUDENT MANAGEMENT ................................................................................................ 45
Harassment...........................................................................................................................49
SPECIAL EDUCATION REQUIREMENTS............................................................................52
RESOURCES ..................................................................................................................... 56
iv
Note on Usage
The Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction (OSPI) has provided this handbook
for distribution to every authorized school bus driver in the state. It is intended to be a
resource for school bus drivers that are in their initial training and for school bus drivers
that have years of experience. It can be used to provide supplementary information to
the complete school bus driver training program, but is not intended to fully cover the
school bus driver training requirements required by Washington Administrative Code
(WAC) 392-144 School Bus Driver Qualifications.
There are many sections of this handbook that emphasize material that is covered in
WAC 392-145 Transportation – Operations Rules. There are many requirements in the
WAC that deal with the responsibilities of school bus drivers. An example is always
having the headlights on while operating a school bus (WAC 392-145-050(8)). This
requirement is not included in the main text of this handbook, since no further
discussion seems necessary. However, school bus drivers must be aware of and
comply with the requirements of the WAC, regardless whether or not a particular
requirement is included for additional discussion within this handbook.
Because this handbook is intended to be used in conjunction with the Commercial
Driver Guide published by the Department of Licensing (DOL), a significant amount of
material that the guide covers regarding defensive driving and the operation of a
commercial vehicle is not repeated here. Every school bus driver should also have a
current copy (paper or electronic) of the Commercial Driver Guide and routinely refresh
their knowledge of its contents.
v
Introduction
Every day in the United States, over 400,000 school buses transport approximately 25
million students between home and school. Collectively, school buses travel 4.3 billion
miles each year. In Washington State, school buses provide over 700,000 student trips
per day and travel over 100 million miles per year. When you consider field trips or
activity trips, nearly every student rides a school bus at some point during the school
year. Student transportation has the best safety record for any mode of ground-based,
passenger transportation. The intent of this manual is to provide the school bus drivers
of Washington State with the information necessary to continue to provide every student
with a safe ride to and from school every day.
This manual provides some of the baseline information you learned when you were first
trained to become a school bus driver. When encountering situations that raise
questions, drivers should look to their local district school bus driver instructors and/or
supervisor for additional assistance.
In Washington State, the majority of school bus drivers are employed directly by school
districts, however, a significant number are employed by private companies contracting
transportation services to school districts. Regardless of the employer, all school bus
drivers operating school buses transporting public school students in the state of
Washington are held to the same stringent qualifications, with the goal of ensuring that
only the “best of the best” are allowed to transport our students. We hope this handbook
will enhance your skills; our State’s dedicated, school bus drivers. Thanks for the great
job you do!
1
SCHOOL BUS DRIVER REQUIREMENTS
School Bus Driver Authorization
Before you can drive students for a public school in Washington State, the school
district you are going to be working for must have you authorized as a school bus driver
by OSPI. The authorization is separate from any requirement related to your driver
license issued by DOL, including the school bus endorsement. You are not issued any
card or certificate indicating that you are an authorized school bus driver. The school
district will make the application once you meet all the requirements. The district is
notified when the authorization is approved.
You must be authorized by each school district you work for as a school bus driver. You
may be working as a substitute driver for a couple of local districts, for instance. In that
case, each district must have you authorized separately. Some districts are set up as
cooperatives and they may choose to handle authorizations in a number of different
ways. While the school district will complete the application process for your school bus
driver authorization, it is your responsibility to ensure you meet the authorization
requirements.
The authorization requirements for school bus drivers are found in WAC 392-144. A link
to all the current rules and regulations can be found in the resource section at the end of
this handbook and is also available on the OSPI Student Transportation webpage at
http://www.k12.wa.us/transportation/
Initial Requirements
The initial authorization requirements for a school bus driver are found in WAC 392-144-
101, and are summarized here:
Have at least five years of experience driving a passenger car.
Complete a Washington State Patrol and a Federal Bureau of Investigation
background record check that does not indicate any disqualifying conditions.
Complete a school bus driver training program overseen by an authorized school
bus driver instructor.
Meet all the continuing requirements for holding a school bus driver
authorization, including a review of a five-year school bus dr
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