(a) Every pupil should be seated in an assigned seat in a school bus. No bus shall be overloaded. The bus shall be considered overloaded when standees are in excess of ten percent of the rated seating capacity of the bus.
(b) The driver shall not permit an uneven distribution of his load. When picking up pupils he shall alternate the filling of front and rear seats. When unloading, care shall be taken that the pupils remaining are fairly evenly distributed between front and rear seats. The pupils shall not move from seat to seat while the bus is in motion.
(c) When approaching a “stop” the bus driver shall cause the warning flasher lights to operate in advance of that “stop” so that motorists may have sufficient warning of his intention. Proper use of the warning signals can assist the driver in getting other vehicles by, thus reducing traffic congestion.
(d) In receiving and discharging pupils on the street, the bus shall be driven to the extreme right side of the paved or traveled portion of the roadway and brought to a full stop, with the flasher or warning lights in operation the full time that the bus remains stationary.
(e) Whenever a school bus stops to discharge or load pupils who must cross the road at a point not under control of a traffic officer or clearly visible electrical or mechanical traffic signal, the pupils shall cross the highway at a point approximately ten feet in front of the standing bus. The bus shall not be started until the pupils are safely on their residence side of the road, or aboard the bus.
(f) In no event shall a bus be driven backward on the school grounds where children are being loaded or unloaded, or upon departing from the school building no bus shall break the lineup by starting around a bus or buses ahead.
(g) The bus driver shall be the sole operator of the entrance door and shall not open the door until traffic has cleared the bus in both directions; pupils who must cross the street to reach their destination shall cross in front of the stopped bus only after the driver has verified that the warning lamps are operating and has notified them it is safe to cross.
Note: Flasher lights are to be used only for the loading and unloading of pupils.
(h) The door shall not be closed and the bus started again until such pupils have reached their residence side of the road.
(i) The driver shall not lease the bus until he has stopped the engine, removed the ignition key and set the brakes.
(j) The driver of a school bus shall not use or permit the use of tobacco, alcohol or narcotics in any form while pupils are riding in the bus.
(k) All buses shall be thoroughly cleaned on the inside daily and cleaned on the outside as often as is necessary to keep the front and rear windows, mirrors, and markings clearly visible.
(OAC 4501-3-06)
(l) Whoever violates Section