In July and August, Kansas Highway Patrol (KHP) troopers, in conjunction with school districts across the state, will conduct the agency's annual inspections of all school buses statewide to ensure they are all in good working order.

Troopers will check the mechanical conditions of the buses as they visit each school district from the middle of July until the beginning of the school session, and will make sure the vehicles will load, transport and unload students safely.

Buses and other vehicles throughout the state are also inspected for compliance with safety regulations. Some of the items troopers will check are the lights, emergency exits, tires, windshield wipers, fire extinguishers, first aid kits and emergency spill kits.

“Our children are our future. We owe it to the family members, and their children alike, to make sure these kids arrive to and from their destinations safely,” said Lieutenant Joshua Kellerman, KHP public information officer. “By partnering with these school districts across Kansas, we can assure that we are taking the proper steps to keep our children safe.”

Additionally, the inspection stickers have been updated this year, as a joint effort between the Kansas Highway Patrol and the Kansas State Department of Education. For any bus or school vehicle passing inspection from June 1, 2014, through May 31, 2015, a blue sticker will be displayed in the lower driver’s side corner of the windshield. Vehicles that do not comply with safety regulations cannot be used to transport students until all defects are corrected and a trooper rechecks the vehicle.

In 2013, the KHP inspected 11,215 buses and other school vehicles for defects. Over the last 10 years, the patrol has inspected 95,237 school vehicles that transport students.