Bill Text: OH HB80 | 2009-2010 | 128th General Assembly | Introduced

---

Bill Title: To require that all new school buses be equipped with a single white strobe light to be activated at all times when the bus is transporting passengers.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 9-0)

Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2009-03-18 - To *Public Safety & Homeland Security [HB80 Detail]

Download: Ohio-2009-HB80-Introduced.html

---

As Introduced

128th General Assembly Regular Session 2009-2010

H. B. No. 80

Representative Domenick 

Cosponsors: Representatives Harris, Letson, Luckie, Newcomb, Okey, Phillips, Sayre, Yuko 

---

A BILL

To amend sections 4511.75, 4511.771, and 4513.17 of

1

the Revised Code to require that all new school

2

buses be equipped with a single white strobe light

3

to be activated at all times when the bus is

4

transporting passengers.

5

BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF OHIO:

Section 1. That sections 4511.75, 4511.771, and 4513.17 of	6
the Revised Code be amended to read as follows:	7

Sec. 4511.75.  (A) The driver of a vehicle, streetcar, or	8
trackless trolley upon meeting or overtaking from either direction	9
any school bus stopped for the purpose of receiving or discharging	10
any school child, person attending programs offered by community	11
boards of mental health and county boards of mental retardation	12
and developmental disabilities, or child attending a program	13
offered by a head start agencypassengers, shall stop at least ten	14
feet from the front or rear of the school bus and shall not	15
proceed until such school bus resumes motion, or until signaled by	16
the school bus driver to proceed.	17

It is no defense to a charge under this division that the	18
school bus involved failed to display or be equipped with an	19
automatically extended stop warning sign as required by division	20
(B) of this section.	21

(B) Every school bus shall be equipped with amber and red	22
visual signals meeting the requirements of section 4511.771 of the	23
Revised Code, and an automatically extended stop warning sign of a	24
type approved by the state board of education, which shall be	25
actuated by the driver of the bus whenever but only whenever the	26
bus is stopped or stopping on the roadway for the purpose of	27
receiving or discharging school children, persons attending	28
programs offered by community boards of mental health and county	29
boards of mental retardation and developmental disabilities, or	30
children attending programs offered by head start agencies	31
passengers. A school bus driver shall not actuate the visual	32
signals or the stop warning sign in designated school bus loading	33
areas where the bus is entirely off the roadway or at school	34
buildings when children or persons attending programs offered by	35
community boards of mental health and county boards of mental	36
retardation and developmental disabilitiespassengers are loading	37
or unloading at curbside or at buildings when children attending	38
programs offered by head start agencies are loading or unloading	39
at curbside. The visual signals and stop warning sign shall be	40
synchronized or otherwise operated as required by rule of the	41
board.	42

The strobe light required by section 4511.771 of the Revised	43
Code shall be activated by the driver of the bus and remain in	44
operation at all times when the school bus is transporting	45
passengers.	46

(C) Where a highway has been divided into four or more	47
traffic lanes, a driver of a vehicle, streetcar, or trackless	48
trolley need not stop for a school bus approaching from the	49
opposite direction which has stopped for the purpose of receiving	50
or discharging any school child, persons attending programs	51
offered by community boards of mental health and county boards of	52
mental retardation and developmental disabilities, or children	53
attending programs offered by head start agenciespassengers. The	54
driver of any vehicle, streetcar, or trackless trolley overtaking	55
the school bus shall comply with division (A) of this section.	56

(D) School buses operating on divided highways or on highways	57
with four or more traffic lanes shall receive and discharge all	58
school children, persons attending programs offered by community	59
boards of mental health and county boards of mental retardation	60
and developmental disabilities, and children attending programs	61
offered by head start agenciespassengers on their residence side	62
of the highway.	63

(E) No school bus driver shall start the driver's bus until	64
after any child, person attending programs offered by community	65
boards of mental health and county boards of mental retardation	66
and developmental disabilities, or child attending a program	67
offered by a head start agencypassenger who may have alighted	68
therefrom has reached a place of safety on the child's or person's	69
passenger's residence side of the road.	70

(F)(1) Whoever violates division (A) of this section may be	71
fined an amount not to exceed five hundred dollars. A person who	72
is issued a citation for a violation of division (A) of this	73
section is not permitted to enter a written plea of guilty and	74
waive the person's right to contest the citation in a trial but	75
instead must appear in person in the proper court to answer the	76
charge.	77

(2) In addition to and independent of any other penalty	78
provided by law, the court or mayor may impose upon an offender	79
who violates this section a class seven suspension of the	80
offender's driver's license, commercial driver's license,	81
temporary instruction permit, probationary license, or nonresident	82
operating privilege from the range specified in division (A)(7) of	83
section 4510.02 of the Revised Code. When a license is suspended	84
under this section, the court or mayor shall cause the offender to	85
deliver the license to the court, and the court or clerk of the	86
court immediately shall forward the license to the registrar of	87
motor vehicles, together with notice of the court's action.	88

(G) As used in this section:

89

(1) "Head start agency" has the same meaning as in section	90
3301.32 of the Revised Code.	91

(2) "School bus," as used in relation to children who attend	92
a program offered by a head start agency, means a bus that is	93
owned and operated by a head start agency, is equipped with an	94
automatically extended stop warning sign of a type approved by the	95
state board of education, is painted the color and displays the	96
markings described in section 4511.77 of the Revised Code, and is	97
equipped with amber and red visual signals meeting the	98
requirements of section 4511.771 of the Revised Code, irrespective	99
of whether or not the bus has fifteen or more children aboard at	100
any time. "School bus" does not include a van owned and operated	101
by a head start agency, irrespective of its color, lights, or	102
markings.	103

(3) "Passenger" means any school child, person attending	104
programs offered by community boards of mental health and county	105
boards of mental retardation and developmental disabilities, or	106
child attending a program offered by a head start agency.	107

Sec. 4511.771.  (A)(1) Every school bus shall, in addition to	108
any other equipment and distinctive markings required pursuant to	109
sections 4511.76, 4511.761, 4511.764, and 4511.77 of the Revised	110
Code, be equipped with signal lamps mounted as high as	111
practicable, which shall display to the front two alternately	112
flashing red lights and two alternately flashing amber lights	113
located at the same level and to the rear two alternately flashing	114
red lights and two alternately flashing amber lights located at	115
the same level, and these lights shall be visible at five hundred	116
feet in normal sunlight. The alternately flashing red lights shall	117
be spaced as widely as practicable, and the alternately flashing	118
amber lights shall be located next to them.	119

(2) On and after the effective date of this section, every	120
new school bus that is acquired by any person to transport school	121
children, persons attending programs offered by community boards	122
of mental health and county boards of mental retardation and	123
developmental disabilities, or children attending a program	124
offered by a head start agency shall be equipped with a single	125
white strobe light, located in the middle of the bus roof.	126

(B) Except as otherwise provided in this division, whoever	127
violates this section is guilty of a minor misdemeanor. If, within	128
one year of the offense, the offender previously has been	129
convicted of or pleaded guilty to one predicate motor vehicle or	130
traffic offense, whoever violates this section is guilty of a	131
misdemeanor of the fourth degree. If, within one year of the	132
offense, the offender previously has been convicted of two or more	133
predicate motor vehicle or traffic offenses, whoever violates this	134
section is guilty of a misdemeanor of the third degree.	135

Sec. 4513.17.  (A) Whenever a motor vehicle equipped with	136
headlights also is equipped with any auxiliary lights or spotlight	137
or any other light on the front thereof projecting a beam of an	138
intensity greater than three hundred candle power, not more than a	139
total of five of any such lights on the front of a vehicle shall	140
be lighted at any one time when the vehicle is upon a highway.	141

(B) Any lighted light or illuminating device upon a motor	142
vehicle, other than headlights, spotlights, signal lights, or	143
auxiliary driving lights, that projects a beam of light of an	144
intensity greater than three hundred candle power, shall be so	145
directed that no part of the beam will strike the level of the	146
roadway on which the vehicle stands at a distance of more than	147
seventy-five feet from the vehicle.	148

(C)(1) Flashing lights are prohibited on motor vehicles,	149
except as a means for indicating a right or a left turn, or in the	150
presence of a vehicular traffic hazard requiring unusual care in	151
approaching, or overtaking or passing. This prohibition does not	152
apply to emergency vehicles, road service vehicles servicing or	153
towing a disabled vehicle, traffic line stripers, snow plows,	154
rural mail delivery vehicles, vehicles as provided in section	155
4513.182 of the Revised Code, department of transportation	156
maintenance vehicles, funeral hearses, funeral escort vehicles,	157
and similar equipment operated by the department or local	158
authorities, which shall be equipped with and display, when used	159
on a street or highway for the special purpose necessitating such	160
lights, a flashing, oscillating, or rotating amber light, but	161
shall not display a flashing, oscillating, or rotating light of	162
any other color, nor to vehicles or machinery permitted by section	163
4513.11 of the Revised Code to have a flashing red light.	164

(2) When used on a street or highway, farm machinery and	165
vehicles escorting farm machinery may be equipped with and display	166
a flashing, oscillating, or rotating amber light, and the	167
prohibition contained in division (C)(1) of this section does not	168
apply to such machinery or vehicles. Farm machinery also may	169
display the lights described in section 4513.11 of the Revised	170
Code.	171

(D)(1) Except a person operating a public safety vehicle, as	172
defined in division (E) of section 4511.01 of the Revised Code, or	173
a school bus, no person shall operate, move, or park upon, or	174
permit to stand within the right-of-way of any public street or	175
highway any vehicle or equipment that is equipped with and	176
displaying a flashing red or a flashing combination red and white	177
light, or an oscillating or rotating red light, or a combination	178
red and white oscillating or rotating light; and except.	179

(2) Except a public law enforcement officer, or other person	180
sworn to enforce the criminal and traffic laws of the state,	181
operating a public safety vehicle when on duty, no person shall	182
operate, move, or park upon, or permit to stand within the	183
right-of-way of any street or highway any vehicle or equipment	184
that is equipped with, or upon which is mounted, and displaying a	185
flashing blue or a flashing combination blue and white light, or	186
an oscillating or rotating blue light, or a combination blue and	187
white oscillating or rotating light.	188

(3) Except a person operating a school bus equipped with a	189
single white strobe light as required by section 4511.771 of the	190
Revised Code, no person shall operate, move, or park upon, or	191
permit to stand within the right-of-way of any public street or	192
highway any vehicle or equipment that is equipped with and	193
displaying a flashing white light that is not used in combination	194
with a red or blue light as provided in this section.	195

(E) This section does not prohibit the use of warning lights	196
required by law or the simultaneous flashing of turn signals on	197
disabled vehicles or on vehicles being operated in unfavorable	198
atmospheric conditions in order to enhance their visibility. This	199
section also does not prohibit the simultaneous flashing of turn	200
signals or warning lights either on farm machinery or vehicles	201
escorting farm machinery, when used on a street or highway.	202

(F) Whoever violates this section shall be punished as	203
provided in section 4513.99 of the Revised Code.	204

Section 2. That existing sections 4511.75, 4511.771, and	205
4513.17 of the Revised Code are hereby repealed.	206