Loading, Boarding, and Trip Start
Domain 2 covers everything between the curb and the first mile: who is aboard, how many, where their bags are, and whether the aisle and doors are clear.
Capacity and counting
The bus placard gives seated capacity and, where allowed, standee capacity; total occupancy is the sum. Count every passenger on and off - children and infants included - and keep a running tally rather than a guess. Recount after every stop. Standees stay behind the standee line, never on the stairwell and never beside the driver.
Baggage, aisle and doors
Bags go in racks or bays, not the aisle. Nothing may block an exit, door travel, or the stepwell. Heavy items ride low and forward; overhead racks only within their limit. If a wheelchair or scooter is aboard, it is secured with a four-point tiedown and the occupant belted. Doors must close completely and the interlock must release before you move.
Trip start
Close doors, confirm the door-open warning is off, check mirrors and blind spots, signal, announce the trip, and pull out only when riders are seated or holding a handhold.
Worked example
Placard: 44 seated, 8 standing. At the third stop your tally reads 46 seated and 8 standing - 54 aboard against a 52 limit. Two passengers must wait for the next bus; letting them stand in the aisle also blocks egress and breaks the aisle-clearance rule, so the count, not goodwill, decides.
Traps
Losing count during a fare scrum; treating a folded stroller as harmless aisle clutter; assuming standing room means anywhere; pulling away while someone is still reaching for a handrail.