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FTA will host a virtual listening session to solicit stakeholder comments and suggestions on FTA’s Bus Testing Program on Thursday, September 8, 2022, at 1:00 PM EDT. Participants are encouraged to provide comments and suggestions on:
• Testing requirements for buses built on a mass-produced chassis
• Expiration dates for Bus Testing Reports
• Definitions of terms and failure classifications
• Scoring and pass/fail criteria
• Testing procedures
• Transit agency (FTA recipient) and manufacturer responsibilities
• Administrative procedures
• Bus Testing Report structure, presentation, and contents
• Ambulatory and wheelchair passenger weights assumed for ballasting test buses
• Permissibility of modifications to a bus already in testing, and if allowed, corresponding modifications to test procedures
Transit agencies, transit vehicle manufacturers, component suppliers, chassis manufacturers, vehicle dealers, state departments of transportation, and other interested stakeholders are invited to participate.
Registration will remain open for general participants up to the time and day of the event.
Comments must be submitted by 11:00 AM EDT on September 8, 2022, for discussion during the listening session. If you are interested in commenting during the event, please send an email with your name, affiliation, and your comment to BusTesting@dot.gov and include “Listening Session” in the subject line. During the listening session, FTA will call on participants in order of submission. FTA may group together similar comments. Commenters will have up to three minutes to speak.
FTA will consider any comments not read during the listening session and will continue to collect comments through September 15, 2022. A link will be posted here immediately following the event.
FTA will review and consider the feedback obtained during the session and intends to use it to identify potential improvements to the Bus Testing Program. FTA expects to issue a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking amending the Bus Testing Regulation (49 CFR Part 665) in the future, and stakeholder participation and contributions are valuable to FTA’s efforts to enhance the implementation of the Bus Testing Program. The listening session will be recorded, and the recording will be made publicly available.
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