Body panel means a body component used on the exterior or interior surface to enclose the bus' occupant space.
Body panel joint means the area of contact or close proximity between the edges of a body panel and another body component, including but not limited to floor panels, and body panels made of composite materials such as plastic or plywood, excluding trim and decorative parts which do not contribute to the strength of the bus body, members such as rub rails which are entirely outside of body panels, ventilation panels, components provided for functional purposes, and engine access covers.
Bus body means that portion of a bus that encloses the bus occupant space, including the floor, but excluding the bumpers and chassis frame and any structure forward of the passenger compartment.
Maintenance access panel means a body panel which must be moved or removed to provide access to one or more serviceable component(s).
Passenger compartment means space within the school bus interior that is between a vertical transverse plane located 762 mm in front of the forwardmost passenger seating reference point and including a vertical transverse plane tangent to the rear interior wall of the bus at the vehicle centerline.
Serviceable component means any part of the bus, of either a mechanical or electrical nature, which is explicitly identified by the bus chassis and/or body manufacturer in the owner's manual or factory service manual as requiring routine maintenance actions at intervals of one year or less. Tubing, wires and harnesses are considered to be serviceable components only at their attachments.
49 C.F.R. §571.221
At 65 FR 11754, Mar. 6, 2000, § 571.221 was amended by revising S5.2.1(a);however, the paragraph did not exist, and the amendment could not be incorporated.