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Connecticut school bus inspection requirements
What Connecticut asks of school-bus companies, in plain English. The main agency: Connecticut Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV), Commercial Vehicle Safety Division.
Good to know: checked against the official sources linked below on October 1, 2026. Rules change, and this is a summary, not legal advice — always confirm the current rules with the agency before you rely on them.
State inspections
- The Connecticut DMV inspects every school bus at least once a year, before the bus is registered. Source
- No vehicle may be registered as a school bus unless it has been inspected under DMV regulations, and the DMV may also carry out random, unannounced inspections of any registered school bus. Source
- After a DMV inspection, the inspector puts a Student Transportation Vehicle Inspection Control (STVIC) sticker on the windshield showing the year and quarter of the inspection, the vehicle class and the control number, and gives the carrier a copy of the inspection report. Source
- A bus with serious defects is marked with an "out-of-service" sticker on the front windshield; it may not carry passengers, the sticker may not be removed until the repairs are done, and a bus taken out of service for brakes, steering, suspension, tires or exhaust may not be driven on any highway. Source
- Defects found at a DMV inspection must be repaired within 10 days, and the carrier must send the DMV a signed repair report within 5 days of the repair; if an out-of-service bus can't be fixed in 10 days, the carrier must report the reason for the delay within 15 days of the inspection. Source
- Carriers must inspect, maintain and repair every school bus themselves at intervals of no more than three months, and check pushout windows, emergency doors, emergency door marking lights, seats and seat belts at least every 90 days, with the work done or supervised by a qualified mechanic. Source
Driver checks
- Every driver must give the carrier a signed, dated written vehicle inspection report (DVIR) each day for each bus driven, listing any defects found in the pre-trip and post-trip inspections (or stating that none were found), and covering at least the service and parking brakes, steering, lights and reflectors, tires, horn, wipers, mirrors, wheels and rims, and emergency equipment. Source
- When a DVIR reports a defect, the carrier must inspect it before the bus is driven again, make any needed repairs, and note its inspection, findings and repairs on the DVIR; the carrier must also sign the DVIR to acknowledge receiving it. Source
Records
- DVIRs must be kept on file for at least six months and shown to the DMV on request, and a copy of the previous operating day's DVIR must be carried in each bus. Source
- For each bus, the carrier must keep vehicle identification, an inspection and maintenance schedule, a record of all inspections, maintenance and repairs (date, description, parts and mileage), a lubrication record, and test results for pushout windows, emergency doors and lights, for at least two years; records may be discarded six months after the bus permanently leaves service. Source
- Carriers must keep a driver qualification file for each driver, including the job application, training history, driving history, medical examiner's certificate and drug test results, and retain these records for three years. Source
Drivers
- A school bus carrying school children must be driven by someone holding a commercial driver's license with a valid passenger and school endorsement. Source
- Before the endorsement is issued or renewed, a school bus driver must meet the federal physical standards in 49 CFR 391, complete safety training, and pass a DMV proficiency exam that includes a road test. Source
- New school-endorsement applicants need at least 10 hours of safety training from an approved instructor (at least 4 hours for CDL holders and some experienced drivers), and renewal requires at least 6 hours of in-service training each year. Source
- Carriers must drug-test drivers before hiring and at random, and must check the DMV's license report at least once in the first and once in the third week of every month, immediately pulling any driver whose license or endorsement was withdrawn, suspended or revoked. Source
- Federal entry-level training for the school bus (S) endorsement must teach how to check the bus for sleeping children and lost items at the end of each route, and how to do pre-trip and post-trip inspections. Source
Evacuation drills
- At least twice each school year, every pupil must be taught safe riding practices and take part in an emergency evacuation drill; the school administration is responsible for this. Source
Keep up with it
Free printable forms: pre-trip · post-trip · DVIR · quarterly inspection · evacuation drill log · CDL & medical card tracker
Other states: New Jersey · New York · Pennsylvania
Records without the paperwork
In FleetCommander drivers do their pre-trip and post-trip on the phone, defects go to the shop and are signed off, every inspection and repair is kept with the bus, and licenses and medical cards are tracked with reminders.