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Old 10-05-2007, 02:28 PM   #1
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private school needing bus

We are looking at opening a private school in rural Minnesota and need a clever way to advertise. I would like a classic 50's-60's era school bus to be used as a school bus, so we need the seats. This would be a non-profit school looking for something to keep as a treasure and mascot of their school, so any of you collectors needing to thin out the collection, this would be an excellent and tax-deductable way to pass on something to be cherished. We can pay, but need price break if possible. Thanks, Jennifer
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Old 10-05-2007, 08:19 PM   #2
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Re: private school needing bus

Just how rural in Minnesota are you? Are you a charter school or.....? There are a few old buses around this neck of the woods (da Range). I'm not sure if they are for sale or not, but they just might be if you talked to the correct person. Let me know just how far away you are and we can go from there.
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Old 10-05-2007, 08:45 PM   #3
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Re: private school needing bus

Thanks for you interest. We are in Grove City, MN, which is just outside of Willmar (western MN). We are not charter or connected to public schools at all, but an Independent Montessori school for Preschool through 6th grade. Any help you could give would be appreciated!
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Old 10-05-2007, 10:09 PM   #4
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Re: private school needing bus

I will put out my feelers locally, but probably won't have much news until Monday at the earliest.
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Old 10-07-2007, 11:03 AM   #5
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Re: private school needing bus

You're going to pay alright. Not to buy the bus, but to get it to pass your state inspections once or twice a year. I wouldn't let my kid ride on a 50 year old school bus. Just my 1 1/2 cents.
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Old 10-07-2007, 07:00 PM   #6
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Re: private school needing bus

Why wouldn't you want your child to ride in a classic bus if it is a safe, taken care of mode of transportation? I would much rather have my child take a bus everyday that is considered the "Prize" of a small school and kept in tip-top condition because it it the one and only bus they have to take care of rather than one of hundreds that only gets inspected twice a year, as you said, unless of course, something happens. Thank you for your input, but I don't think you quite thought about what you said from all sides, but if you feel more comfortable putting your child on a bus inspected only twice a year instead of everyday by a loving owner, by all means, go right ahead.
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Old 10-07-2007, 07:27 PM   #7
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Re: private school needing bus

He does make a valid point though. Many states don't allow you to transport a pupil in a vehicle over a certain number of years old. 10-15 seems to be the average. Now with newer technology they have pushed that out a bit. In Minnesota I believe the law has changed on buses now so that there is no longer a year-based limit, but rather on corrosion among other factors. I can look into it further, but I would STRONGLY suggest that you get in contact with the MHP Commercial Vehicle inspector in your area before you undertake this project. I guess I was under the impression that you were just going to use this bus for promotion, not for pupil transport.

To get you started....

This is SOME of the state statutes that pertain directly to pupil transportation.

http://tinyurl.com/2zsy97

And this is the 2005 edition of the National School Transportation Specifications and Procedures manual. The statutes actually call for 2000 rules which I couldn't find, but I think the 2005 regs would be a good starting place. Start looking at just how anal they are about structural stuff and a retrofit of an old bus is going to start looking more and more expensive.

http://tinyurl.com/yuuq55


Again...I must reiterate that is is of the UTMOST importance that you do some groundwork here first and get in contact with the Minnesota State Patrol to make sure this project is plausible. There are far too many unfinished projects out there just to see another one fail!
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Old 10-08-2007, 12:06 PM   #8
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Re: private school needing bus

At first I wasn't going to answer your reply, but since we are talking about the saftey of school children that are not involved in this well thought out(NOT) decision, I find that I must. I will try to keep my snottiness and personal attacks to a minimum.

By your answer, it shows your ignorance to the laws pertaining to commercial vehicles. When I mentioned the state inspections, they are inspections that have to be passed. What do you think happens when you don't pass an inspection? You park the friggen bus and make all the mommies and daddies change their schedule to get their kids to school. But why? Because some nimrod thought it would be nice to have a 50 year old bus as a daily driver in zero degree weather.

Busses are inspected before every shift by the driver. If there is a problem, the bus goes in the shop and a backup bus is used. Most school districts and school bus companies have their own shops and mechanics. They inspect their busses constantly, probably not as much as by a "loving owner". What are you going to do for parts? Run down to your local Kragen's.

Another thing that I find irritating is someone from a Montessori school coming on to a site for the first time and asking for a donation or did I misunderstand what you wrote ("this would be an excellent and tax-deductable way to pass on something to be cherished. We can pay, but need price break if possible")? Some Montessori schools charge upwards of $10,000 per year. Do you give price breaks? Many people here are on a serious budget. You got some nerve LADY. I only caught that fact after I reread your original post. Then, I had to go back and take out the really mean stuff. That made me even more angry.



THANK YOU for your REPLY, but I don't think YOU quite thought about what you said from all sides.
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Old 10-08-2007, 04:07 PM   #9
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Re: private school needing bus

You know what, how dare you come into a site where I was only asking for help and friendly advise to get a good project off the ground. Not that I should have to justify myself to you, but we are a non-profit Montessori school trying to make ourselves available for low income families, and you know nothing about it, so to try to make me feel like a horrible person with your all out attacks is a terrible thing to do. To suggest I not have children! You do not even know me, sir, and I would like to keep it that way!You should really be ashamed of yourself.
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Old 10-08-2007, 04:28 PM   #10
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Re: private school needing bus

To the_experience03,
Please excuse my previous post, I was rather disturbed and sad. Thank you for your links. From the research I have done so far I have been under the understanding that as a independent private school, we have the same requirements of that of a homeschooler. We may use any "safe mode of transportation" as long as it is agreed upon by all parties before hand.The reason we need it cheap is because our plan has been to completely restore an older looking bus to like new condition, which would be our major expense, but I want to make it as safe as possible. I will investigate some more to be sure, but I have gotten nothing but positive opinions from my local "customer base." If all else fails, we would use it strictly for advertisment, but I would like to try this first. Thank you again for helping me out with your suggestions nicely. I guess some people will never understand being nasty doesn't get things accomplished. Again, I am sorry for the way I spoke in my previous posts, and know that none of that was directed towards you.
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Old 10-08-2007, 05:21 PM   #11
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Re: private school needing bus

I can't emphasize enough the importance of you contacting the State Patrol, your insurance company, and more than likely your school's lawyer. Pupil transportation is NOT something to be taken lightly. I'm not sure where the line is drawn between what is a "school" and what isn't. I DO know that parochial schools (which are also non-profit and private) must follow the exact same laws pertaining to transportation as the public schools do. Indeed, the laws pertaining to school buses simply say "school," not public school, private school, etc. But I am no lawyer....

All of this is going to be important irregardless of the model year of the bus. I might suggest doing your legwork and THEN coming back here when you know for sure that what you want to do is practical.



Just an example....

169.449 SCHOOL BUS OPERATION.
Subdivision 1. Rules. The commissioner of public safety shall adopt rules governing the
operation of school buses used for transportation of school children, when owned or operated by
a school or privately owned and operated under a contract with a school
, and these rules must
be made a part of that contract by reference. Each school, its officers and employees, and each
person employed under the contract is subject to these rules.
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Old 10-08-2007, 06:54 PM   #12
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Re: private school needing bus

Quote:
Originally Posted by starstriver
You know what, how dare you come into a site where I was only asking for help and friendly advise to get a good project off the ground.
How dare I. You got that right. I dare. What I wrote in my original post was honest and sincere. You are going to spend tons of money and I still wouldn't let my daughter ride on it. It might not have been the answer you were looking for, but it was the truth in my opinion. Nothing nasty.


But then you wrote,

Quote:
Originally Posted by starstriver
Thank you for your input, but I don't think you quite thought about what you said from all sides, but if you feel more comfortable putting your child on a bus inspected only twice a year instead of everyday by a loving owner, by all means, go right ahead.
I'm the one who hasn't looked at this from all sides. Yes, you are right. I didn't look at this through the eyes of a twelve year old. What side do you want me to look at. How about, "Gee, we're low income and they make us ride in this crappy old bus while the other kids get newer busses. If they only would have used some of that money from fixing up this crappy old bus, we might be riding a bus that's only 10 years old and a hundred times safer".


Quote:
Originally Posted by starstriver
Not that I should have to justify myself to you, but we are a non-profit Montessori school trying to make ourselves available for low income families, and you know nothing about it, so to try to make me feel like a horrible person with your all out attacks is a terrible thing to do.

You don't have justify yourself to anyone, certainly not me(I am a nobody), unless you are asking for something, like a bus be donated. If you are trying to help low income families and your school is a non-profit (whatever tax b.s. that is), give them an education. Spend your money there. Don't show them how foolish you can be with money that's not yours. Unless you actually earned that money you are spending, you have a moral obligation to SPEND IT WISELY!


How do I say this without making it sound nasty. My daughter has gone to private school since Pre-K. She is now a senior at UC San Diego. I have paid through the nose for her education. If the someone in the school would have come up with an idea like the one suggested, I would have strongly discouraged it. If they replied the way that you did, my kid would have been out of that school. Her school actually did ask me to provide transportation to and from school for some of the kids. I have a transportation comany. My reply was thank you for asking, but no thank you. I don't want to be in the school bus business.


Quote:
Originally Posted by starstriver
To suggest I not have children! You do not even know me, sir, and I would like to keep it that way!You should really be ashamed of yourself.
Yes, I am ashamed of myself.

And after all of this, you still insist of going through with your foolish project, start here and read it from cover to cover. School bus section starts on page 16 of 168. Know the book front to back. It doesn't make a differnece if you made a deal with the devil, if it is not within the law, "it don't mean nothin!" as far as the cops are concerned.



http://www.dps.state.mn.us/dvs/DLTra...CDL_Manual.pdf
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Old 10-08-2007, 07:46 PM   #13
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Re: private school needing bus

I probably should have just checked my Minnesota CDL manual rather than try and navigate the statutes online....


Definitions
"School bus" means: a motor vehicle used to transport pupils (grades K-12) to or from a school or to or from school-related activities, by the school or a school district, or by someone under an agreement with the school or a school district. A school bus does not include:

•A motor vehicle transporting children to or from school for which parents or guardians receive direct
compensation from a school district.
•A motor coach operating under charter carrier authority.
•A transit bus.
•A vehicle otherwise qualifying as a type III vehicle when the it is properly registered and insured and being driven by an employee or agent of a school district for nonscheduled transportation.

Unfortunately for you all signs still seem to point towards needed this thing to be a full fledged inspection passing bus with endorsement carrying and commercially licensed driver.
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Old 10-09-2007, 06:03 PM   #14
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Re: private school needing bus

To Jennifer,

I apologize for my nastiness. I will not try to justify why I wrote what I wrote. Let's just leave it at that.

Cal
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Old 10-09-2007, 06:32 PM   #15
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Re: private school needing bus

crazy cal is right. he may have been a little blunt about it, but, he is right nonetheless.

a school bus is an appliance. newer, safer, more comfy buses, are basically thrown away by school systems when they are barely broken in. Buying one of these for pennies on the dollar makes alot of economic sense.

buying an old classic makes absolutely no sense to anyone with even the slightest bit of mechanical sense. Even after you spend a HUGE amount of money bringing one back to mint condition, you will have something that might look pretty, but, as an appliance, it does a really shitty job.

leave the classic bus/car/motorcycle/boat restorations to folks with lots of throw away income and spare time.

if you truely want to help poor kids, bless you. Just don't use this noble cause as a reason to fullfill an old bus restoration dream.

i assume you haven't had to work on an old vehicle. many of us here have and let me tell you, working on a 20 year old dodge pickup can be a pita. i can only guess what a pain a much larger 2X as old bus would be.

bail out on this idea before you waste anymore time on it.

good luck with the school and the 10 year old bus you end up buying.
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Old 10-09-2007, 07:24 PM   #16
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Re: private school needing bus

i'd like to appologize for some of the posts from my fellow skoolie.net members. I don't know what happened. This is usually a very friendly place with friendly answers.

in my opinion a 20 year old school bus is probably 10 times safer than a passenger car or a heaven forbid one of those 19 passenger vans.

i'm sorry you were attacked for asking a question and presenting your idea.

i also agree that you should prob talk to the state highway patrol, and the school lawyer. Even if you have to follow a bunch of official bus rules i'm sure it's not an impossible task. Where there is a will there is a way

good luck

let us know how things turn out
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Old 10-09-2007, 08:19 PM   #17
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Re: private school needing bus

Quote:
Originally Posted by lapeer20m
i'd like to appologize for some of the posts from my fellow skoolie.net members. I don't know what happened. This is usually a very friendly place with friendly answers.

in my opinion a 20 year old school bus is probably 10 times safer than a passenger car or a heaven forbid one of those 19 passenger vans.

i'm sorry you were attacked for asking a question and presenting your idea.

i also agree that you should prob talk to the state highway patrol, and the school lawyer. Even if you have to follow a bunch of official bus rules i'm sure it's not an impossible task. Where there is a will there is a way

good luck

let us know how things turn out
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Old 10-10-2007, 09:59 AM   #18
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Re: private school needing bus

Thanks for your suggestion, and I see your point. The main reason I wanted a classic is because the whole theme of the school is "make history come alive." Our school building is being built like the "old red schoolhouse," with a belltower, wood floors, etc. With all these things, though, we've had to make ajustments to modern days, like our heat will have to be radiant floor heat, otherwise wood floor would get mighty chilly. So is there a way we can use the look of an old bus to continue the historic aspect? My dad had classic cars growing up, and my husband is a car nut, so I do know the work it involves. Like if I had all the money in the world, we could replace the old parts with all new? I don't know - help me guys.
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Old 10-10-2007, 11:41 AM   #19
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Re: private school needing bus

I have seen people pull the body off a bus and put it on a newer chassis. However this would be a lot of work and I am not sure what you would really gain.

Take a look at this link, then click on Chassis at the bottom of the page to see what is involved.

http://showcase.netins.net/web/phantomgas/bus.html

I also think that if you wanted the vintage international front end like my bus you can fit it on in place of the newer international hoods. That would give the front end a vintage look but retain the modern passenger area and chassis.
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Old 10-10-2007, 12:08 PM   #20
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Re: private school needing bus

Thanks guys. Okay, so I have found this bus, I think it's beautiful.It's a 1956 Chevy. The style is perfect, body is sound according to owner, and ran well a couple of years ago, but he has since gotten to busy to go to the shows and meets with it like he used to, so it's just been sitting. What would I be getting myself into with something like this?
http://www.classicsareus.com/56schbs.html
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