What does the term Type A school bus mean?
The Type A school bus is one of seven vehicle types that can be manufactured to federal motor vehicle safety standards for school buses. It consists of a bus body constructed upon a cutaway front-section vehicle with a left side driver’s door, designed for carrying more than 10 persons. This definition includes two classifications: Type A-I, with a Gross Vehicle Weight Rating (GVWR) of 10,000 pounds or less, and a Type A-2, with a GVWR of 10,000 pounds or more. Type A school buses meet all Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards for school buses. These buses have traditionally referred to as “the short bus,” a negative connotation denoting the fact that many transport students with disabilties. But today, Type As are just a frequently used for regular route transportation, albeit that of a smaller busload of children to, say, a neighborhood school.
