MISSISSAUGA, Ontario — The Canadian Standards Association (CSA) has published a new standard for school buses, which will take effect June 1, 2013.

As SBFpreviously reported, the agency was seeking comments on a draft of the new standard earlier this year.

In its recent newsletter, the Ontario School Bus Association (OSBA) reported that the standard, D250-12, builds on the previous standard, D250-07, and is the product of numerous meetings of the D250 Technical Committee on School Buses over the last few years.   

Most of the changes from the D250-07 standard are relatively minor, according to OBSA, but some of the more significant changes are as follows:

• It includes requirements for school buses that are intended to be wheelchair accessible.

• There is a new requirement for a compliance label stating specifically that the school bus complies with the D250-12 revision of the standard.

It also includes specific requirements for handrails at the service door entrance. Exterior mirror requirements are changed to include a remote control for the side rearview mirrors. In addition, there is a new requirement for compliance with a side intrusion standard adopted from the U.S. standard as part of the 2010 version of the National School Bus Specifications and Procedures.

The standard applies to Type A1, A2, B, C and D school buses, according to the CSA website, but it does not cover aftermarket and retrofit installations since those are covered by provincial and territorial regulations.

OSBA said that all school buses manufactured on or after June 1, 2013, must be manufactured to the new standard. School bus operators are required to maintain school buses to the version of the standard that was in effect on the day that the bus was manufactured.  

The association noted that CSA has strict copyright rules for its published standards, so OSBA is not legally able to reproduce and circulate the standard.

The CSA D250-12 standard can be purchased for $125 here.