Prohibited Practices
Prohibited Practices
The exam tests acts that are illegal or unsafe in passenger service. Many are absolute: there is no short-trip exception.
Core prohibitions
- Do not fuel a bus with passengers aboard. If fueling is unavoidable, passengers must be off the bus, and no smoking is allowed nearby.
- Do not allow smoking on the bus, including by the driver.
- Do not carry unauthorized riders, hitchhikers, or anyone in a towed vehicle.
- Do not tow a bus with passengers aboard.
- Do not allow standees forward of the standee line, in the stairwell, or on the steps.
- Do not block aisles or exits with baggage, coolers, or equipment.
- Do not use a handheld phone or text while driving.
- Do not carry hazardous materials in the passenger compartment.
- Do not open emergency exits except in an emergency or authorized drill.
Worked example
A driver is low on fuel with a full bus and pulls into a station. The driver should not fuel with riders aboard. The correct action is to have passengers leave the bus and wait in a safe area, or fuel before loading. Keeping riders aboard because it is only five minutes is a prohibited practice.
Traps
- Thinking the fueling rule applies only to school buses.
- Allowing a rider to stand in the stairwell at a stop.
- Letting a friend ride without authorization.
- Treating exit alarms as optional.
- Carrying a passenger gasoline can in the aisle.