All school buses in Kentucky public and independent school districts are inspected each month by a Kentucky State Certified School Bus Inspector. School Bus Inspectors must have a minimum of two (2) years of heavy truck or school bus experience, possess a Class B Commercial Driver's License (CDL), and complete training by a certified School Bus Inspector Instructor. Testing to become a Certified School Bus Inspector includes eight (8) hours of classroom instruction followed by a hands-on test. If you have questions on how to become a School Bus Inspector, please contact
Carl Meehan at (502) 564-5279 Ext. 4442.
Each year, the Kentucky Department of Education
School Bus Specification Committee meets to make any necessary changes to the school bus specifications for the upcoming school year. This committee is comprised of Superintendents, Directors of Transportation, School Bus Driver Training Instructors, CDL 3rd Party Examiners, School Bus Inspectors, Technicians and School Bus Drivers.
Upon the completion of the school bus specifications and bid process, school districts are able to purchase new school buses.
School Bus Ordering
Orders for buses are placed electronically by KDE Pupil Transportation Branch staff. The bus ordering system opens October 1st and closes June 30th. All KISTA financed bus orders must be submitted by November 1st.
For questions related to bus ordering, please contact
Carl Meehan via email or telephone at (502) 564-5279 Ext. 4442.
School Bus Inventory
School bus inventory is updated once a year, starting in October and finalized in December. Kentucky public and independent school districts provide the inventory data and must ensure that all Kentucky school buses are listed in KDE's school bus inventory.
2022-2023 Kentucky School Bus Inventory
For questions related to bus inventory, please contact Mikala Ferguson via email or telephone at (502) 564-5279 Ext. 4451.