H-3760.1          _______________________________________________

                                  HOUSE BILL 2806

                  _______________________________________________

State of Washington              52nd Legislature             1992 Regular Session

By Representatives Orr, Wood, Day, R. Fisher, Haugen and Silver

Read first time 01/28/92.  Referred to Committee on Transportation.Studying the design of buses to comply with state weight limits.

     AN ACT Relating to overweight buses; and adding new sections to chapter 46.44 RCW.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF WASHINGTON:

NEW SECTION. Sec. 1.  A new section is added to chapter 46.44 RCW to read as follows:

     The legislature finds that recent models of full-size buses exceed the maximum allowable axle weights established by RCW 46.44.041 and federal law.  Overweight bus permits waiving this requirement have been issued by the state department of transportation but that department has indicated that it will not issue these permits after April 30, 1993.  Most buses covered by these waivers cannot comply with the statutory weight limit by that date.

     The legislature further finds that alternative public transit bus design offers the potential for providing buses that could comply with the statutory weight limits.  Additional design and research work needs to be done.  This could be accomplished by the joint efforts of the department, public transit agencies, and existing state research facilities.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 2.  A new section is added to chapter 46.44 RCW to read as follows:

     (1) The bus research and design account is created in the custody of the state treasurer.   The department of transportation shall deposit all fees collected under the provisions of this chapter into the account.  Only the director of the department of transportation, or the director's designee, may authorize expenditures from the account.  The account is subject to allotment procedures under chapter 43.88 RCW, but no appropriation is required for expenditures.

     (2) Expenditures from the account may only be used for the following:

     (a) Research and design of buses that comply with RCW 46.44.041; and

     (b) Surveys and studies to determine the market feasibility of redesigned, lighter transit buses.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 3.  A new section is added to chapter 46.44 RCW to read as follows:

     The department, in consultation with the Washington state transit association, shall contract with the Washington state transportation council for research, design, surveys, and studies for the purposes of expenditures out of the bus research and design account.