Following the release of the "School Bus Safety Management Regulations", the National Standards Committee issued the "National Standard for Special School Bus Safety" on April 10, 2012, stipulating that the maximum number of passengers for kindergarten school buses shall not exceed 45, and the maximum number of passengers for primary school buses and primary and secondary school buses shall not exceed 56. The standard will be implemented on May 1.

　　According to reports, the "National Standard for Special School Bus Safety" consists of two mandatory national standards, "Technical Conditions for Special School Bus Safety" and "Strength of Student Seat System and Vehicle Fixing Parts of Special School Bus". These two national standards clarify the various technical indicators and test methods of school buses and seat systems, and pay more attention to vehicle safety performance, humanization of vehicle configuration, and operability of vehicle safety management. For example, the standard requires that the steps (steps) of special school buses cannot be too high, handrails must be set up for boarding and alighting, the passages must be flat and non-slip, the seats and partitions must be softened, and the air quality in the car must meet the standards. The standard also makes a series of provisions on speed limiting devices, passenger number restrictions, first aid kits, caretaker seat configurations, special school bus sign lights, parking signs, driving recorder video monitoring systems, etc.

　　Compared with the original national standard "Technical Safety Conditions for Special Elementary School Buses", the "National Standard for Special School Bus Safety" has revised more than 30 items such as student seats, emergency exits, and steps, and added more than 30 requirements such as first aid kits, interior decorations, signal systems, and the maximum number of passengers on each school bus.
　　The reporter learned that the new national standard has a certain transition period, and products that have been licensed or certified will be implemented from the 13th month from the date of implementation of this standard.

　　Interpretation of the "National Standard for Special School Bus Safety"

　　Capacity: School bus shall not exceed 56 people

　　The maximum number of passengers on a kindergarten school bus shall not exceed 45; the maximum number of passengers on a primary school bus and a primary and secondary school bus shall not exceed 56. The
　　weight of each child on a kindergarten school bus shall be calculated as 30 kg, the weight of each student on a primary school bus shall be calculated as 48 kg, the weight of each student on a primary and secondary school bus shall be calculated as 53 kg, the weight of each caregiver shall be calculated as 68 kg, and the weight of the driver shall be calculated as 75 kg.

　　Appearance: No external luggage racks allowed

　　The new national standard divides school buses into light school buses and large and medium-sized school buses. The length of light school buses is greater than 5 meters and less than or equal to 6 meters, and the length of large and medium-sized school buses is greater than 6 meters and less than or equal to 12 meters.
　　The height of school buses shall not be greater than 3.7 meters, and luggage racks shall not be installed outside the vehicle. Articulated buses and double-decker buses cannot be used as special school buses. Special school buses should be equipped with front and rear bumpers.

　　Interior: No raised burrs

　　There should be no holes inside or outside the bus that could easily trap the fingers of infants and primary school students, and there should be no defects such as protrusions, depressions, and sharp corners that could cause injuries. High and low handrails should be installed at the passenger doors of school buses, and there should be no protrusions or burrs on the handrails that could cause injuries. At
　　least the lower half of the side windows in the passenger area should be closed, and the visible light transmittance of all window glass should be no less than 50%, and no opaque colored paper or heat-insulating paper with any mirror-reflective material should be posted.
　　The passenger area of school buses for infants should adopt a flat floor structure, and there should be no steps on the floor except for local structural protrusions such as wheel covers and inspection covers.
　　The floor coverings in the seating area, aisle area, and approach area should be non-slip and wear-resistant.

　　Car top: Install school bus sign lights

　　School buses should have two yellow school bus marker lights installed on the front and rear of the top of the vehicle. The distance between the front marker light and the front edge of the roof should be no more than 40 cm; the distance between the rear marker light and the rear edge of the roof should be no more than 40 cm. The lamp should have a round transparent lampshade and emit light 360° around its vertical axis. After installation, the school bus marker light should not be higher than 20 cm above the upper surface of the roof skin.

　　Behind the car: Paste "Please stop and wait"

　　School buses should clearly display the words "Please Stop and Wait" and "When the Stop Sign is Extended" in red on the outer surface of the rear panel of the vehicle, in an area that can be seen by approaching vehicles behind. The words "When the Stop Sign is Extended
　　" should be below the words "Please Stop and Wait"; the words "Please Stop and Wait" should be at least 20 cm high. The words "When the Stop Sign is Extended" should be at least 13 cm high.

　　Air Quality: Install Forced Ventilation

　　If natural ventilation is not possible, a forced ventilation device should be installed. The composition of the air in the car should meet the regulations.
　　It is allowed to use air purification devices with sterilization and harmful gas elimination functions to meet the air quality requirements.

　　Step: The step on the vehicle should not be higher than 35 cm

　　Under the vehicle's curb weight, the height of the first step from the ground to the passenger door should not exceed 35 cm, and the height of the other steps should not exceed 25 cm. The depth of the first step of a light-duty special school bus should not be less than 23 cm, and that of a large or medium-sized special school bus should not be less than 30 cm.

　　Seat: Non-folding soft seat

　　Infant and student seats should be arranged forward. Infant and student seats shall not be placed in front of the horizontal vertical plane where the driver's seat is located. Infant and student seats shall be arranged in a "2+3" pattern at most in the horizontal direction of the vehicle. Infant and student seats
　　should not be folding seats. Each infant and student seat should have a backrest, and the backrest width should not be less than the seat cushion width. Infant and student seats should be soft.
　　The seat cushion width of a single infant and student seat should not be less than 38 cm. If it is a long infant and student seat, the seat cushion width for each person should be at least 33 cm, the seat cushion depth should be at least 30 cm, the seat cushion height should be greater than 22 cm, and the backrest thickness should be at least 4 cm.

　　Seat spacing: at least 50 cm wide

　　The "National Standard for Special School Bus Safety" requires that the seat spacing between kindergarten school buses should be no less than 50 cm, the seat spacing between elementary school school buses should be no less than 55 cm, the seat spacing between primary and secondary school school buses should be no less than 65 cm, and the seat spacing between caregivers should be no less than 65 cm.

　　Emergency exit: at least one on each side

　　Special school buses should have only one passenger door located between the front and rear wheels on the right side. To facilitate evacuation and rescue, the vehicle should have at least one exit on the left and right sides. There should be at least one exit in the front and rear halves of the passenger area. There should be at least one exit in the rear area. Exits include emergency doors, emergency windows and top evacuation hatches. Large and medium-sized school buses should also be equipped with top evacuation hatches.

　　Lighting: Two lighting circuits should be provided

　　The interior lighting should cover all passenger and crew areas.
　　There should be at least two internal lighting circuits, and when one circuit fails, it should not affect the lighting of the other circuit.

　　Driving recorder: with satellite positioning function

　　The new national standard requires that school buses should be equipped with a driving recorder with satellite positioning function; the display part of the driving recorder should be easy to observe, and the data interface should be convenient for plugging and unplugging mobile storage media.
　　School buses should be equipped with in-vehicle and out-vehicle video monitoring systems and a reversing voice prompt system.

　　Security: Fire extinguisher and first aid kit

　　Fire extinguishers should be installed in the passenger compartment, and there should be at least one dry powder fire extinguisher weighing at least 2 kg near the seat of at least one attendant and the seat of the driver. At
　　least one installation location and mounting bracket for a first aid kit should be designed in the school bus. The location where the first aid kit is installed should be clearly marked with "First Aid Kit" or the internationally accepted symbol.