Amendment to Illinois Vehicle Code Imposes New Requirements on School Buses and Drivers

Effective July 28, 2011, Public Act 97-0224, amends the Illinois Vehicle Code, and imposes several requirements for school buses and drivers.  The amendment provides that school districts must maintain copies of school bus driver permits for each driver.  This includes taxi drivers providing transportation to students.  The amendment also provides that buses used to transport students must not have been previously in salvage or junk status and that buses must initially pass safety tests prior to registration and pass subsequent tests every 6 months.  School buses must display a Certificate of Safety and a bus which is not in safe mechanical condition may not be operated on the highways until it has been repaired and passes a subsequent inspection.  The amendment increases the insurance requirements for school buses, which now must be insured in the minimum amount of $1,000,000 for one person in any one accident and $5,000,000 for 2 or more persons injured by reason of the operation of the vehicle in any one accident.