HB1238enr 95TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY

HB1238 Enrolled LRB095 08962 DRH 29153 b

AN ACT concerning transportation.

Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois, represented in the General Assembly:

Section 5. The Illinois Vehicle Code is amended by changing Section 12-815 as follows:

(625 ILCS 5/12-815) (from Ch. 95 1/2, par. 12-815)

Sec. 12-815. Strobe lamp on school bus.

(a) A school bus manufactured prior to January 1, 2000 may be equipped with one strobe lamp that will emit 60 to 120 flashes per minute of white or bluish-white light visible to a motorist approaching the bus from any direction. A school bus manufactured on or after January 1, 2000 shall be equipped with one strobe lamp that will emit 60 to 120 flashes per minute of white or bluish-white light visible to a motorist approaching the bus from any direction. The lamp shall be of sufficient brightness to be visible in normal sunlight when viewed directly from a distance of at least one mile.

(b) The strobe lamp shall be mounted on the rooftop of the bus with the light generating element in the lamp located equidistant from each side and either at or behind the center of the rooftop. The maximum height of the element above the rooftop shall not exceed 1/30 of its distance from the rear of the rooftop. If the structure of the strobe lamp obscures the light generating element, the element shall be deemed to be in the center of the lamp with a maximum height 1/4 inch less than the maximum height of the strobe lamp unless otherwise indicated in rules and regulations promulgated by the Department. The Department may promulgate rules and regulations to govern measurements, glare, effectiveness and protection of strobe lamps on school buses, including higher strobe lamps than authorized in this paragraph.

(c) The strobe lamp may be lighted only when the school bus is actually being used as a school bus and:

1. is stopping or stopped for loading or discharging pupils on a highway outside an urban area; or

2. is bearing one or more pupils. and is either stopped or, in the interest of safety, is moving very slowly at a speed:

(i) less than the posted minimum speed limit, or

(ii) less than 30 miles per hour on a highway outside an urban area.

(Source: P.A. 91-168, eff. 1-1-00; 91-679, eff. 1-26-00.)

Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect upon becoming law.