Tripper Rule

Introduction

The "Tripper Rule" refers to FTA Regulations (49 CFR Part 605), which serves to protect private school bus operators from competition and to ensure that transit agencies that receive FTA funding are serving the needs of the general public.

The Tripper Rule applies to both home-to-school student transportation and to transportation for school-sponsored activities (like field trips and sports games).

Implications for Transit Agencies

What transit agencies are permitted to do:

• Provide transportation for public K-12 students as part of their service available to the general public.
• Operate tripper buses along school routes, provided that the additional buses are available to the general public.
• Stop a bus in front of a school, provided that the stop is properly signed as any other stop would be.
• Operate an incidental charter bus for school-sponsored activity transportation.

What transit agencies are NOT permitted to do:

• Provide transportation exclusively for public K-12 school students.
• Name the bus route and/or display signage bearing the name of a K-12 public school.
• Advertise a bus as a "School Special."
• Place a bus stop on school property.

Examples

Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority uses the following descriptions to establish when they operate school tripper service and what requirements it must meet:

Criteria for Operation:

• Sufficient demand
• Sufficient resources available
• Will not result in a significant increase in travel time for regular customers
• Operated as part of the regularly scheduled public transportation service

Requirements:

• Comply with established policies and procedures
• Published on public timetables
• All locations where trippers board or alight passengers, including the bus stops at deviated routes, must be marked with Metro signage including the bus line numbers servicing the stop
• Changes must be provided to the general public by a service change notice or on the Metro website

LA Metro states that "requests for new school trippers or modifications to existing school trippers will be considered when a minimum notice is given at least two weeks prior giving ample time to complete an appropriate analysis of the request and to allow appropriate notification of changes."