New rules for organized transportation of children from January 1, 2021

New rules for transporting children in 2021

Details Category: Traffic rules Published 12/28/2017

The government has signed a decree that makes many amendments to the rules for the organized transportation of children from 2021. Details are in the material of the Avtospravochnaya.com portal.

On December 27, 2021, Decree No. 1621 of December 23, 2021 “On additional requirements for the organized transportation of groups of children by bus” was published on the website of the Government of the Russian Federation. This document makes changes to the rules for transporting groups of children.

New definition of organized transportation of a group of children

The document introduces a modified wording for the organized transportation of children into the text of the traffic rules (clause 1.2):

“Organized transportation of a group of children” - transportation on a bus that is not a route vehicle, a group of children of 8 or more people, carried out without their parents or other legal representatives.”

Buses for transporting children are required to be equipped with flashing lights

Another change is that clause 3.4 of the Russian Traffic Regulations, which lists equipment that must be equipped with orange flashing lights, also added buses carrying children:

3.4. A yellow or orange flashing light must be turned on on vehicles in the following cases:

• performing work on the construction, repair or maintenance of roads, loading damaged, faulty and moving vehicles;
• transportation of large cargo, explosive, flammable, radioactive substances and highly dangerous toxic substances;
• escort of vehicles transporting large, heavy and dangerous goods;
• accompanying organized groups of cyclists during training events on public roads;
• organized transportation of a group of children.

In parallel with this, the following paragraph was added to paragraph 3 of the Rules for the organized transportation of a group of children by bus:

“When organizing the transportation of a group of children, a yellow or orange beacon must be turned on when the bus is moving on its roof or above it.”

Postponement of the ban on transporting children over 10 years old on buses

By this resolution, the Government once again postponed the entry into force of the ban on transporting children over 10 years of age by bus: from January 1 to July 1, 2021. Let us remind you that from January 1, 2021, a ban on transporting children by buses over 10 years of age was supposed to come into force in Russia. Previously, this ban was postponed several times - to January 1, 2021, then to July 1, 2021, and the last time it was postponed for another six months - until January 1, 2021. We are talking about the above-mentioned paragraph 3 of the Rules for the organized transportation of a group of children by bus:

“To carry out the organized transportation of a group of children, a bus is used, from the year of manufacture of which no more than 10 years have passed, which in terms of purpose and design meets the technical requirements for the transportation of passengers, is approved in the prescribed manner for participation in road traffic and is equipped in the prescribed manner with a tachograph, as well as satellite navigation equipment GLONASS or GLONASS/GPS.”

According to the latest amendments, the date of entry into force of this paragraph from January 1, 2021 was again postponed by six months - to July 1, 2018.

Added definitions “tour operator” and “travel agent”

The definitions of “tour operator” and “travel agent” have been added to the rules for organized transportation of a group of children by bus:

“The concepts of “tour operator”, “travel agent” are used in the meanings provided for by the Federal Law “On the Fundamentals of Tourism Activities in the Russian Federation”.

Driver experience

Drivers who have continuous experience as a driver of a category “D” vehicle for at least one year as of the start date of the organized transportation of a group of children are allowed to transport children.

Transporting children by several buses

If 2 or more buses are used to carry out the organized transportation of a group of children, the head or official responsible for ensuring road safety of the organization, and in the case of organized transportation of a group of children under a charter agreement, the charterer appoints a senior person responsible for the organized transportation of a group of children and coordination actions of drivers and those responsible for buses carrying out such transportation. The numbering of buses during movement is assigned by the manager or official responsible for ensuring road safety, the organization, and in the case of organized transportation of a group of children under a charter agreement - by the charterer and transferred to the charterer no later than the day preceding the date on which the start of such transportation is scheduled.

Admission of unauthorized persons when transporting children

When organizing the transportation of a group of children by bus, it is prohibited to allow persons not included in the lists onto the bus and (or) transport on it, except for a designated medical worker. Employees of a tour operator, travel agency or organization providing excursion services participating in the implementation of the route program are allowed to travel on the bus if these workers have with them a document confirming their employment relationship with the tour operator, travel agency or organization providing excursion services and participation in the implementation route programs. This prohibition does not apply to cases established by federal laws.

Document requirements for transporting children

Grocery list

If children are on the route according to the schedule for more than 3 hours in each bus, the head or official responsible for ensuring road safety, the organization, and in the case of organized transportation of a group of children under a charter agreement, the charterer or charterer (by mutual agreement) ensures the availability sets of food products (dry rations, bottled water) from the range established by the Federal Service for Surveillance on Consumer Rights Protection and Human Welfare.

The list of food supplies for transporting children on trips longer than 3 hours is included in the list of required documents.

Lists of people

According to the latest amendments, the required documents for travel are:

• list of children (indicating the last name, first name, patronymic (if any) and age of each child, contact telephone number of parents (legal representatives);
• list of assigned accompanying persons (indicating the last name, first name, patronymic (if any) of each accompanying person, his contact telephone number);
• a list of employees of the tour operator, travel agency or organization providing excursion services (indicating the last name, first name, patronymic (if any) of each accompanying person, his contact telephone number) - in case of their participation in the implementation of the route program.

List of boarding children on the bus

The latest version of the requirements for the boarding list for children during transportation is formulated as follows:

“A document containing the procedure for boarding children on the bus, established by the manager or official responsible for ensuring road safety, an educational organization, an organization providing training, an organization carrying out educational activities, a medical organization or other organization, an individual entrepreneur carrying out organized transportation of a group children (hereinafter referred to as the organization), or the charterer, except for the case when the specified procedure for boarding children is contained in the charter agreement.”

Deadlines for submitting documents

A complete list of documents for the organized transportation of children is submitted by the carrier no later than the day preceding the date on which such transportation is scheduled to begin. It is allowed, instead of a list of employees of a tour operator, travel agency or organization providing excursion services, provided for in subparagraph, to provide information on the number of such employees, with the transfer of the corresponding list before the start of organized transportation of a group of children. The driver must also receive copies of all documents no later than the day before the date on which the trip is scheduled to begin.

Multi-trip notification

A notification about the organized transportation of a group of children may be submitted in respect of several planned organized transportations of a group of children along the same route, indicating the dates and times of such transportation.

Changes to paragraph 3 of the transportation rules (flashing lights and the ban on buses older than 10 years) will come into force on July 1, 2021, all other amendments - from January 3, 2021.

New requirements for bus driver experience

8. Drivers who meet the following requirements are allowed to drive buses carrying out organized transportation of groups of children:

• having worked as a driver of a category “D” vehicle for at least one year as of the date of the start of organized transportation of a group of children from the last year and one month;
• have not committed administrative offenses in the field of road traffic, for which administrative punishment is provided in the form of deprivation of the right to drive a vehicle or administrative arrest, during the last year;
• who have undergone pre-trip instruction on the safety of transporting children in accordance with the rules for ensuring the safety of transportation of passengers and cargo by road and urban ground electric transport, approved by the Ministry of Transport of the Russian Federation;
• have undergone a pre-trip medical examination in the manner established by the Ministry of Health of the Russian Federation.

17. The following drivers are allowed to drive buses carrying out organized transportation of groups of children:

a) who, on the date of the start of organized transportation of a group of children, have worked as a driver of a category “D” vehicle for at least one year out of the last 2 years;

b) who have undergone pre-trip instruction in accordance with the rules for ensuring the safety of transportation by road and urban ground electric transport, approved by the Ministry of Transport of the Russian Federation in accordance with paragraph two of paragraph 2 of Article 20 of the Federal Law “On Road Traffic Safety”;

c) who, within one year before the start of organized transportation of a group of children, were not brought to administrative responsibility in the form of deprivation of the right to drive a vehicle or administrative arrest for administrative offenses in the field of road traffic.

Bus driver experience appears to be the most challenging requirement, one that lawmakers have been grappling with for years. Therefore, the required experience is constantly changing. Either up or down.

From January 1, 2021, the driver must have worked as a category D bus driver for at least 1 year out of the last 2 years. That is, this time the requirements have become less severe.

Do you think the length of service requirements will change in the future? And what figure will legislators ultimately settle on?

Escort of transport convoy by law enforcement agencies

Escort is required when the transport convoy consists of at least three buses. To organize an escort, you must submit an application to the state traffic inspectorate no later than two days in advance. The document is submitted by the event manager or sent by email to the official Internet resource of the state inspection.

The document must include the following information:

• date and duration of the event;
• exact route;
• full name of the accompanying person;
• full name of the driver, driver's license details;
• number of passengers for each bus;
• list of state license plates of all vehicles.

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Important! If the event involves fewer than three buses, the trip organizer is also required to notify the traffic police department. To do this, you need to draw up a similar application and submit it to the traffic police. A document with a mark from the traffic police that law enforcement agencies have been notified of the event is retained by the driver.

Changes in legislation

Changes have been made to the standards for the transportation of minors, fixed by Government Resolution No. 652.

The following terms have been added to the wording specified in the old version of the document:

• transportation is carried out unaccompanied by two persons representing the interests of minors (they can be declared as accompanying persons, workers with medical education);
• the minimum number of people in a group is 8;
• if the planned duration of the trip exceeds four hours, the minimum age of minors is seven years;
• the bus cannot make unscheduled stops not provided for in the route list, transport other persons and perform the functions of public transport;
• the column consists of at least 3 buses;
• the driver must have a certificate issued by the state traffic inspectorate - from 2021, at the request of a traffic police representative, it is allowed to present a copy;
• upon completion of transportation, the driver’s license is stored in the state traffic inspectorate for three years;
• transportation of children is carried out from 6-00 to 23-00, the only exception is if the event is associated with the departure of other transport (train or plane);
• if you are planning an overnight trip, the maximum distance between the points of departure and arrival is 50 km.

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Important! If a group of minors is accompanied by persons representing their interests, security measures are entrusted to them; accordingly, the requirements and standards of transportation should not be met.