Texas school bus laws cover four different audiences at once: the districts that decide who rides, the buses themselves, the drivers behind the wheel, and every motorist who shares the road with a stopped bus. Most Texas students have no legal right to bus service; most Texas drivers have a legal duty to stop when a bus’s red lights come on. The rules below explain both sides, along with the penalties for getting them wrong.
When Drivers Must Stop for a School Bus
Under Texas Transportation Code 545.066, when a school bus stops on a highway to pick up or drop off students and activates its red flashing lights and stop arm, drivers approaching from either direction must stop. You cannot proceed until the bus starts moving again, the driver signals you to go, or the visual signals are turned off.1State of Texas. Texas Transportation Code 545.066 – Passing a School Bus Offense
Yellow flashing lights are the warning. They mean the bus is about to stop, and by the time the red lights and stop arm come out, you need to already be stopped.2National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. Back to School – Keeping Children Safe
There are two narrow exceptions. You do not have to stop for a school bus traveling on a separate roadway of a divided highway. You also do not have to stop on a controlled-access highway when the bus is in a loading zone next to the highway where pedestrians cannot cross. In every other situation, the obligation runs in both directions of travel.
Passing a stopped school bus is a misdemeanor carrying a fine of $500 to $1,250, with enhanced penalties for repeat offenses.
Which Students the District Has to Transport
A common assumption is that any Texas student who lives far enough from school is entitled to a bus ride. That is not the law. Texas Education Code 34.007 authorizes districts to operate a transportation system but does not require them to run one for the general student population.3Texas Education Agency. School Transportation Allotment Handbook The “two-mile rule” parents often cite is a state funding threshold: districts can claim state transportation money for students who live two or more miles from campus along the shortest publicly maintained route. It is not a service guarantee.
Three groups of students do have enforceable rights to transportation.
Students With Disabilities
Under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, transportation is a “related service” that can include travel to and from school, travel between schools, and specialized equipment such as adapted buses, lifts, and ramps.4U.S. Department of Education. IDEA 2004 Resource – Questions and Answers on Serving Children with Disabilities Eligible for Transportation When a student’s Individualized Education Program calls for transportation, the district must provide it no matter how close the family lives to campus. The same duty extends to qualifying students under Section 504 of the federal Rehabilitation Act.
Students Experiencing Homelessness
The McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act allows children experiencing homelessness to stay in their school of origin, with transportation provided, even if the family moves. If the family stays inside the same district, that district arranges transportation on request. If the family moves into another district while the student keeps attending the original school, both districts must agree on cost sharing; if they cannot agree, they split the cost equally.5Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 42 USC 11432 – Grants for State and Local Activities for the Education of Homeless Children and Youths The transportation must be arranged without delay, must be comparable to what other students receive, and continues through the rest of the school year in which the child becomes permanently housed.
Students in Foster Care
The Every Student Succeeds Act requires districts to work with child welfare agencies on written procedures for transporting foster children to their school of origin. This duty applies even to districts that do not transport other students.6U.S. Department of Education. Ensuring Educational Stability for Children in Foster Care – Transportation Procedures Any added cost can be absorbed by the district, reimbursed by the child welfare agency, or shared, and the child stays in the school of origin while any cost dispute is being worked out.
Hazardous Route Exception
Students who live within two miles of school may still qualify for transportation if the walk would be dangerous. Under Texas Administrative Code 61.1016, a hazardous traffic condition exists where children would have to walk along or cross a freeway, expressway, overpass, underpass, bridge, uncontrolled major traffic artery, or industrial area with no walkway. A high-violence area is one where law enforcement records show a high incidence of violent crime.7Cornell Law School Legal Information Institute. 19 Tex. Admin. Code 61.1016 – Hazardous Transportation Funding The local school board makes the designation.
Bus Equipment and Safety Standards
Texas Transportation Code 547.7015 directs the Department of Public Safety to set rules for the design, color, lighting, equipment, construction, and operation of every school bus operated in the state, whether owned by a district or run by a contractor. In practice, those rules require compliance with the Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, covering structural integrity, emergency exits, lighting, and braking. Buses must carry flashing red lights, extendable stop arms, and reflective markings under Texas Administrative Code Chapter 14.
Seat Belts
Every school bus purchased by a district on or after September 1, 2010, and every school-chartered bus contracted on or after September 1, 2011, must be equipped with a three-point seat belt for each passenger, including the driver.8Texas Legislature Online. 80(R) HB 323 – Enrolled Version Older buses do not have to be retrofitted, so a pre-2010 bus may still be running without passenger belts. Where belts exist, Texas Education Code 34.013 requires districts to make students wear them and permits disciplinary policies to enforce that.
Inspections
Buses must pass an annual safety inspection by a licensed state inspector, covering brakes, steering, tires, lights, and emergency exits, under Texas Administrative Code Chapter 14. Drivers also perform a pre-trip inspection before the first route of the day. A bus with a known safety defect cannot go back into service until the repair is made, and any used bus a district buys must meet or exceed all federal and state safety requirements before carrying students.
15-Passenger Vans
Schools cannot buy or lease a new 15-passenger van to transport students to or from school or school events unless the van meets federal school bus safety standards. Violations can trigger substantial civil penalties.9National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. School Bus Regulations FAQs The restriction reaches new purchases and leases; federal law does not regulate how states allow used vehicles to be used, so district policies vary on that side.
Who Can Drive a Texas School Bus
A Texas school bus driver must hold a commercial driver’s license with both a passenger endorsement and a school bus endorsement. Since February 2022, anyone getting a school bus endorsement for the first time must also complete federally mandated Entry-Level Driver Training under 49 CFR Part 380.10FMCSA. Entry-Level Driver Training (ELDT)
Every driver must pass an annual physical exam meeting the federal standards in 49 CFR 391.41 and 391.43, covering vision, hearing, blood pressure, and general fitness. A valid medical examiner’s certificate must be with the driver whenever the bus is in operation.11Cornell Law School. 37 Tex. Admin. Code 14.12 – Medical Qualifications
Applicants must clear a national criminal history background check through both the Texas Department of Public Safety and the FBI. Convictions for serious offenses disqualify applicants, and districts get automatic notice if a current driver is arrested or convicted after hire.
Federal rules in 49 CFR Part 382 require drug and alcohol testing at four points: before hire, at random intervals, after any reportable accident, and any time a supervisor has reasonable suspicion of impairment.12eCFR. 49 CFR Part 382 – Controlled Substances and Alcohol Use and Testing A failed test pulls the driver from the wheel immediately and usually ends the job. These rules cover anyone driving a vehicle built to carry 16 or more passengers, which is nearly every school bus in service.
Student Conduct and Cameras on the Bus
Districts write their own bus codes of conduct, and they typically ban fighting, vandalism, profanity, and refusing to follow driver instructions. Drivers can assign seats, issue warnings, and refer students for discipline. A district can suspend bus privileges when a student’s behavior puts others at risk.
Vandalism can become a criminal case. Texas Penal Code 28.03 defines criminal mischief as intentionally damaging someone else’s property without consent, with the penalty tier set by the dollar value of the damage.13State of Texas. Texas Penal Code 28.03 – Criminal Mischief
Cameras are common on Texas school buses. Texas Education Code 26.009 generally requires written parental consent before school employees record a child, with exceptions for certain monitoring uses.14State of Texas. Texas Education Code 26.009 – Consent Required for Certain Activities When a student’s account of an incident conflicts with the driver’s, footage often settles it.
One boundary worth flagging: Texas Education Code 37.126 makes it a Class C misdemeanor to intentionally disrupt school transportation, but this statute is aimed at people other than enrolled students, such as adults who interfere with a bus route or loading zone.15State of Texas. Texas Education Code 37.126 – Disruption of Transportation Student misbehavior on the bus itself is handled through district discipline, not this criminal charge.
Penalties and Enforcement
For motorists, the direct penalty is the stop-arm fine of $500 to $1,250, with more for repeat offenses.
For drivers, the penalties fall on the CDL. Under Texas Transportation Code 522.081, an alcohol-related conviction, or refusal to submit to an alcohol test, disqualifies a CDL holder for at least one year on the first offense and for life on the second.16Department of Public Safety. Commercial Driver License (CDL) Disqualifications If the driver was hauling students when the offense happened, the initial disqualification runs longer. A lifetime-disqualified driver may be reinstated after 10 years if they complete an approved rehabilitation program, but reinstatement is discretionary.
A first-time DWI conviction in Texas carries up to $2,000 in fines, up to 180 days in jail with three mandatory days, and a license suspension of up to one year, plus additional state fines of $3,000 to $6,000 on top of the base penalty.17Texas Department of Transportation. Impaired Driving and Penalties For serious traffic violations short of DWI, two convictions within three years disqualify a CDL holder for 60 days; three within the same period bring a 120-day disqualification.16Department of Public Safety. Commercial Driver License (CDL) Disqualifications
For districts, neglecting driver screening or vehicle maintenance can cost state transportation funding, and a district that fails to address a known hazardous condition and injures a student in the process can face civil liability.