115C-248. Inspection of school buses and activity buses; report of defects by drivers; discontinuing use until defects remedied.

(a) The superintendent of each local school administrative unit, shall cause each school bus owned or operated by such local school administrative unit to be inspected at least once each 30 days during the school year for mechanical defects, or other defects which may affect the safe operation of such bus. A report of such inspection, together with the recommendations of the person making the inspection, shall be filed promptly in the office of the superintendent of such local school administrative unit, and a copy thereof shall be forwarded to the principal of the school to which such bus is assigned.

(b) It shall be the duty of the driver of each school bus to report promptly to the principal of the school, to which such bus is assigned, any mechanical defect or other defect which may affect the safe operation of the bus when such defect comes to the attention of the driver, and the principal shall thereupon report such defect to the superintendent of the local school administrative unit. It shall be the duty of the superintendent of the local school administrative unit to cause any and all such defects to be corrected promptly.

(c) If any school bus is found by the principal of the school, to which it is assigned, or by the superintendent of the local school administrative unit, to be so defective that the bus may not be operated with reasonable safety, it shall be the duty of such principal or superintendent to cause the use of such bus to be discontinued until such defect is remedied, in which event the principal of the school, to which such bus is assigned, may permit the use of a different bus assigned to such school in the transportation of the pupils and employees assigned to the bus found to be defective.

(d) The superintendent of each local school administrative unit, shall cause each activity bus which is used for the transportation of students by such local school administrative unit or any public school system therein to be inspected for mechanical defects, or other defects which may affect the safe operation of such activity bus, at the same time and in the same way and manner as the regular public school buses for the normal transportation of public school pupils are inspected. A report of such inspection, together with the recommendations of the person making the inspection, shall be filed with the principal of the school which uses and operates such activity bus and a copy shall be forwarded to the superintendent of the local school administrative unit involved. It shall be the duty of the driver of each activity bus to make the same reports to the principal of the school using and operating such activity bus as is required by this section. If any public school activity bus is found to be so defective that the activity bus may not be operated with reasonable safety, it shall be the duty of such principal to cause the use of such activity bus to be discontinued until such defect is remedied to the satisfaction of the person making the inspection and a report to this effect has been filed in the manner herein prescribed. Nothing in this subsection shall authorize the use of State funds for the purchase, operation or repair of any activity bus.