Bill would require bus inspections

INDIANAPOLIS — Owners of privately owned buses would have to submit proof of an inspection to state officials in order to register the vehicle under a bill filed at the Statehouse in response to a deadly church bus crash last summer.

Sen. Tom Wyss, R-Fort Wayne, told The Indianapolis Star the bill stemmed from a July crash of a bus carrying youths and chaperones from Colonial Hills Baptist Church back from a Michigan camp. The church’s youth pastor, his pregnant wife and a chaperone died in the crash.

Investigators found no mechanical issues with the church bus. But Wyss said the public should know if a bus has been inspected.

His bill, which would affect buses holding at least 16 passengers, would require Indiana State Police to establish criteria for inspecting private buses. Inspections likely would be carried out by government-approved mechanics and would include checks of the brakes, steering, tires and other parts.

Wyss said the inspection results would be accessible through public records requests.

“It’s back to public safety,” Wyss said. “If we as a state are going to legitimize you with a license plate, I think the general public believes it’s legitimately a safe vehicle.”

Former National Transportation Safety Board chairman James Hall said the bill is a “good step” toward increasing accountability and transparency for owners of private buses.

He urged lawmakers to consider additional safeguards to hold private buses to the same standards as commercial ones by ensuring that those inspecting the buses are properly trained.

He also suggested including a decal on the bus indicating when it was last inspected.