“
We believe that a single global standard would
facilitate the procurement of suitable suppression systems better than the present situation where there are several different available standards out there.”
— Fredrik Rosén, SP’s Department of Fire Technology.
systems work better with rear-engine buses because the driver cannot see the flames and may not smell the smoke. Tat’s good enough for Clark County Schools Transportation
Director Frank Giordano. Two-thirds of the 1,500-bus fleet serving the Las Vegas area consists of 40-foot, rear engine vehicles. Giorda- no has already begun exploring installing fire suppression systems in his entire fleet, especially the rear engine buses. “We’ve had a few fires here that started in the engine com-
partment,” he said. “If you really want to do something, put a suppression system where the source of the fire generally starts. Especially with the extreme heat here in Nevada, we need to do something. In our case we have rear engine buses. We need to put something in place that will assist the driver.” Nevada and Maryland transportation directors were surprised
by state legislation last year that placed them in the unenviable position of shopping for school buses they say do not exist. Tat legislation, passed in Nevada but was defeated in Mary-
land as well as in Illinois, requires all plastic parts in the engine compartment to meet a V-0 classification when tested in accor- dance with Standard UL 94, which was originally developed for household appliances. Te plastic parts would be treated with Brominated Fire Retardants (BFRs), chemicals that may emit toxic fumes when subjected to open flames. Te EPA is currently evaluating the risks of these chemicals. Currently, no bus engines are built to those specifications. “(The Nevada bill) passed before we were even aware of it,”
said Joseph Suchecki, director of public affairs for the Engine Manufacturers Association (EMA). “It wasn’t on our radar. Right now, Nevada would not be able to buy any buses. If we were to comply, it would add extra cost to the buses. And obviously for one or two states it would be very difficult if not impossible to build engines for just one state. That would increase costs as well.” Maryland dodged the bullet last year and again this year, when the
bill’s sponsors, the Citizens for Fire Safety (CFFSI), again pushed the same requirement. Te measure passed the Senate and reached the House Rules Committee last month before the legislature adjourned with no further action being taken. Te EMA wrote a letter to CFFSI opposing the bill. NASDPTS and SBMTC issued a joint position pa- per last fall opposing the UL 94 standard saying it was developed for household appliances and not bus engines.
42 School Transportation News Magazine May 2012
Taking FIVE Tis September, the SP Technical Research Institute will
present its proposed international standard for bus and motorcoach fire suppression systems at the Fires in Ve- hicles (FIVE) 2012 International Conference in Chicago. Te event, co-sponsored by SP, is a meeting of scientific minds as well as fire safety companies, motor carriers, vehicle manufacturers, insurance companies and first re- sponders from around the world. Te focus this year is on fire development and in vehicles, with a special focus on alternative fuels, regulations and standards, incident management, insurance issues and, of course, fire detec- tion and suppression. Presentations will also be made by the likes of NHTSA, the Volpe National Transportation Systems Center, NTSB, GM, and Kidde Research. More information can be found at
www.firesinvehicles.com.
“We feel strongly that this is not the right approach to fire
safety,” said Leon Langley, Maryland’s state director for pupil transportation. “Te school bus is the safest surface vehicle on the planet because of the process developed by NHTSA to set safety standards. We will do everything we can within reason, but UL 94 is not an acceptable standard.” ■
Read this month’s online Web Exclusive for a Q&A with NHTSA on how it views fire safety in school buses. Visit
www.stnonline.com/home/web-exclusive for more.
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