Danger Zones and Use of Mirrors
What this domain tests
Danger Zones and Use of Mirrors asks you to locate the area where students are hardest to see and to show you know how each mirror on the bus is adjusted and used. Expect items on the size of the zone, which side of the bus is most dangerous, and what a correctly set flat, convex, or crossover mirror should show.
Core rules
- The danger zone is the 10-foot band around the bus: roughly 10 feet ahead of the bumper, 10 feet behind the rear, and 10 feet out along each side.
- The most dangerous spot is directly in front of the bus, where a small student disappears below the hood line. The right side is the next most dangerous.
- Flat side mirrors: adjust so you see a strip of the bus body, the rear tires touching the ground, and about 200 feet of road behind, with the horizon centered.
- Convex (spot) mirrors: adjust to show the side of the bus and the danger zone beside and behind it. Objects look smaller and farther away, so never judge distance in them.
- The crossover mirror on the front fender shows the pavement directly in front of the bumper.
- Check mirrors before moving and again after students are seated, because a child who drops something may duck back into the zone.
Worked example
A student steps off, drops a notebook six feet in front of the bumper, and bends to pick it up. Six feet is inside the 10-foot zone. The driver keeps the red lights on, keeps the brake applied, and does not move until the student is back on the sidewalk and visible in the crossover mirror.
Traps that cost marks
- Treating the danger zone as only the front door area.
- Judging distance in a convex mirror as if it were flat.
- Pulling away as soon as the last head leaves the doorway instead of counting students out and away.