N.J. School Bus Inspection Squads Gearing Up For Start of School Year
By Mike DeNardo
CINNAMINSON, N.J. (CBS) -- With the new school year beginning, New Jersey's mobile inspection teams are making the rounds to make sure that school buses are being properly maintained.
Officials from the NJ Motor Vehicle Commission were at the Cinnaminson School District this morning, showing reporters how buses are inspected.
It's an inspection so meticulous that 48 percent of vehicles fail, according to Motor Vehicle Commission chief administrator Ray Martinez.
"It's 180 specific items that they will go through," he says, "and it's everything that you would imagine: the tires, the wheels, the brakes, the lights -- the signal lights."
But most violations are quickly remedied so the buses can be reinspected and thereby deemed roadworthy, Martinez says.
Inspections are done twice a year by the state, and more often by individual districts.
The MVC's web site also has a feature that lets parents view the inspection record of their child's bus.
