What are the different types of school buses?

Shenandoah County Public Schools use the conventional style school buses. The Conventional Style school bus is the traditional style with the long forward hood. The bus is equipped with swing-out "crossing gates" which force any students crossing in front of the bus to walk well out in front of the bus so that the driver can see him or her. In terms of bus sizes, the 64-passenger conventional buses are the ones that are used to transport most students. We also have 77-passenger buses that will be assigned based on the number of students on a route. The smaller buses are 34-passenger buses. These are nominal sizes, though. Many of these buses are equipped with wheelchair lifts. A single wheelchair position requires the same space as two or three bench seats. Therefore, a lift-equipped bus will carry far fewer passengers than its nominal size might indicate. All of our buses are diesel-powered. Additionally, all of our buses are equipped with two-way radios.  more

Fairfax County Public Schools has several types of school buses. The majority of FCPS buses are Transit Style buses that have a flat front, like a Metro bus. Most of the largest (general education) buses are rear-engine; shorter lift buses have the engine in the front. The benefits of this design are that (1) it affords the driver excellent forward visibility, (2) since there is no large hood, it is easier and safer for the driver to check the engine prior to driving and (3) allows more seats in the same overall vehicle length. All of the buses that Fairfax County has bought since 1990 have been this type of bus.The second major style of bus is the Conventional Style, which is the traditional style with the long forward hood. The decreased forward visibility afforded by this design is compensated for by swing-out "crossing gates" which force any students crossing in front of the bus to walk well out in front of the bus so that the driver can see him or her. As of Spring 2008, Fairfax ...  more

Virginia Beach City Public Schools use the conventional style school buses. The Conventional Style school bus is the traditional style with the long forward hood. The bus is equipped with swing-out "crossing gates" which force any students crossing in front of the bus to walk well out in front of the bus so that the driver can see him or her.In terms of bus sizes, the 64-passenger conventional buses are the ones that are used to transport most students.The smaller buses range in size from 54-passenger to 36-passenger buses. These are nominal sizes, though. Many of these buses are equipped with wheelchair lifts. A single wheelchair position requires the same space as two or three bench seats. Therefore, a lift-equipped bus will carry far fewer passengers than its nominal size might indicate.All of our buses are diesel-powered. Additionally, all of our buses are equipped with two-way radios.  more