Section 300.35. Construction.

 

(1)  The construction shall be of prime commercial quality steel or other metal, or material with strength at least equivalent to all-steel, as certified by the bus body manufacturer, except for the grill, hood, or fenders and shall comply with FMVSS 220, school bus rollover protection. Type A-I, B, C or D school buses shall comply with FMVSS 221, school bus body joint strength.

(2)  The construction shall provide a reasonably dustproof and weather tight unit. Openings between the chassis and passenger compartment shall be sealed to prevent fumes or exhaust gas from entering the bus body.

(3)  The floor or subfloor shall be of prime commercial quality steel of at least 14 gauge or material with strength at least equivalent to all-steel, as certified by the bus body manufacturer. Plywood may be used in addition to other flooring material. The floor shall be level from front to back and from side to side except in the wheel housing, toeboard, and driver's seat platform areas. The body cross members below the floor may have no more than 2 consecutive and no more than 3 total members that are completely rusted through.

(4)  For type A-I, B, C or D buses, all joints within bus bodies which employ discrete fasteners, specifically those which join panels to panels, shall achieve a significant portion of the strength of the parent metal, so that all available panel materials are capable of serving as part of the structure.

(5)  All metal used in construction of the bus body shall be zinc- or aluminum-coated or treated by an equivalent process before the bus is constructed. Included are such items as structural members, inside and outside panels, floor panels and floor sill. Excluded are the door handles, grab handles, stanchions, interior decorative parts, and other interior plated parts.

(6)  Annually between December 1 and December 15, each school bus manufacturer shall certify to the department that all school buses manufactured for sale in Wisconsin in the following calendar year will comply with this section. The certification shall be filed in the division of state patrol. The certification may be addressed to the administrator, division of state patrol, P.O. Box 7912, Madison, WI 53707-7912.

(7)  Each school bus body manufacturer shall stamp the letters "WI" either preceding or following the body identification number to indicate that the bus body was built to meet Wisconsin school bus construction standards. The school bus body manufacturer shall furnish to the department a blueprint indicating the size and placement of the "WI" requirement on its buses to be sold in Wisconsin. A sample plate shall be furnished by the manufacturer to the division of state patrol showing the placement of the "WI". This subsection does not apply to vehicles in use as school buses in Wisconsin prior to March 1, 1979.

(8)  The owner of any vehicle previously marked, registered, or titled in another jurisdiction as a school bus shall, prior to using the vehicle for any pupil transportation in Wisconsin, submit the vehicle for department inspection and approval as provided by s. Trans 300.13 (3) . In addition, the owner shall provide proof satisfactory to the division of state patrol that the vehicle is constructed in compliance with this section.

Cr. Register, February, 1983, No. 326 , eff. 3-1-83; am. (1), (2), (6), r. and recr. (8), Register, February, 1995, No. 470 , eff. 3-1-95 ; emerg. am. (1) and (3), eff. 7-1-97; am. (1), (3) and (4), Register, December, 1997, No. 504 , eff. 1-1-98.