School Bus Vehicle Characteristics and Safe Driving Practices
Domain 7 tests how a school bus's size, weight, and high center of gravity change driving. Questions cover following distance, tail swing, off-tracking, blind spots, crosswind, and backing.
Vehicle dynamics
- A school bus is heavy and tall: stopping distance is longer, rollover risk is higher in sharp turns, and crosswinds push it more.
- Tail swing: when the front turns, the rear swings outward in the opposite direction. Check mirrors and allow clearance.
- Off-tracking: the rear wheels track inside the front wheels, so the bus needs extra room on turns.
- Blind spots are large, especially on the right side and directly behind.
Safe following and speed
- Use at least a four-second following distance; add one second for each 10 feet of bus length beyond 40 feet. A 40-foot bus needs four seconds, a 60-foot bus six seconds.
- Increase the gap in rain, fog, or darkness.
- Slow before curves and turns; brake smoothly and avoid sudden steering.
Backing
Avoid backing with students aboard. If backing is unavoidable, use a spotter and check all mirrors; stop if you lose sight of the spotter.
Worked example
A 40-foot bus travels at 40 mph, about 59 feet per second. A four-second gap is about 235 feet. In rain, the driver adds at least one more second, to roughly 295 feet, and reduces speed. The driver also allows for tail swing when turning into a narrow street.
Traps
- Following with a two-second gap.
- Forgetting tail swing when pulling away from a curb.
- Backing without a spotter.
- Taking a curve at the posted car speed.