North Carolina showcases new school buses, driver training

On Tuesday, the North Carolina Division of Motor Vehicles showed off its new school buses used for training school bus drivers.

In a media availability, the NCDMV gave reporters and others an opportunity to see the new buses that allow the DMV to train drivers outside of the limited window of availability provided by local schools. The division also provided information about updated training methods that simply and shorten the testing process without sacrificing safety.

“We hope this method will reduce the intimidation factor for potential new school bus drivers who must first obtain a commercial driver license with both a passenger and school bus endorsement,” DMV Commissioner Wayne Goodwin said. “All of us associated with school bus and traffic safety efforts in our state realize the most important accomplishment is safely delivering our precious children to school and back home again every day.”

The new training methods include three days of classroom instruction and four days behind the wheel, officials said. The new buses, provided to the DMS in 2023, are part of the Governor’s Emergency Education Relief (GEER) fund, that also provided funding for additional trainers and retention bonuses for existing trainers.

The updates to training is part of NCDMV’s participation in the American Association of Motor Vehicle Administrators’ (AAMVA) modernized “train the trainer” course. When the course ends in September, the division will systematically roll out the new training method to prospective school bus drivers over the following months, officials said.

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