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The Oregon Department of Education has worked diligently to stay current and congruent with changes that occur within the DMV commercial drivers program, particularly in regard to third party testing. Due to changing Federal requirements, some modifications will be made to the testing program this summer with an implementation date near the end of the calendar year. Since these changes will impact our partners in the third party program, we wanted to give you sufficient time to prepare. Presently, the straight backing maneuver in the basic control skills test begins with the school bus in front of the stall, and ends with the bus partially out of the stall (the back of the bus passes the rear cones). In the revised test, the bus will start outside the stall (at the front) and back all the way through the stall so the front bumper is past the rear cones (the end of the stall).
The new straight backing maneuver will require 100 feet for the stall, plus the length of the bus at each end of the stall (a full size Type D is 40 feet long). This would require a new total of 180 feet for the maneuver (i.e. 100’ + 40’+ 40’= 180’). Those with smaller buses will need less space. We wanted to notify you of this change so you can verify that you have enough room at your testing site for this modification. Since we have visited most of your properties, we believe most of you will be able to adjust without moving the event. If you need to modify your test route for DMV, please consider this additional distance as you set up the route changes. If you have plenty of room, you are ready for the changes in the fall. If you do not have sufficient space, now is the time to plan.
In previous years we have made every effort to move in sync with DMV as their test model changes. Our plan is to be ready when this change goes into effect. Therefore, do not modify the straight backing maneuver until the implementation date, which we will share with you once it is announced. We intend to adjust our training manuals to reflect this change and will announce a recertification process for current BTW instructors to account for everyone with current credentials.
If you have questions, please contact Craig Pruitt, Scott Bohl, or Brock Dittus.
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