By Jessica Mathews / news@whmi.com


Most Livingston County districts fared well during annual school bus safety inspections.

As students return to school, Michigan State Police vehicle safety inspectors completed annual safety inspections of all public and private school bus fleets in the state, with 79% of buses passing the initial inspection. Vehicle safety inspectors completed 16,844 inspections during the 2019/2020 school year, as well as an additional 1,197 re-inspections of buses that failed the initial inspection.

Buses that do not pass the initial annual inspection receive either a yellow or red tag. Yellow-tagged buses may continue to operate as long as identified defects are repaired within 60 days. A red-tagged bus cannot be used for pupil transportation until it is repaired.

A Certificate of Excellence will be presented to districts whose fleet achieved a 100% pass rate, as well as those districts whose fleet achieved a 95 to 99% pass rate.

Area public school districts that had 100% passing rates included Brighton, Chelsea, Dexter, Hartland, Okemos, Pinckney and Whitmore Lake. The Livingston Educational Service Agency had 59 buses inspected and one was red-tagged. In Howell Public Schools with 52 buses, there was one yellow tag and two red tags. Fowlerville Community Schools had 23 buses, with two yellow tags and two red tags.

A comprehensive listing of inspection results for school districts and contractors operating pupil transportation vehicles can be found through the provided link. Additionally, individual school bus inspection results can be accessed by scanning the QR Code sticker located on the service door of each bus.