Posted on 05/26/2007 6:16:11 AM PDT by TornadoAlley3
JERICHO, Vt. (AP) - Vermont Governor Jim Douglas has signed into law a bill to ban school buses from idling while parked on school grounds.
The governor signed the bill yesterday at the Browns River Middle School in Jericho where a seventh grade social studies class conceived of the idea to ban idling as a way to save fuel and protect the environment.
Douglas thanked the students for focusing on reducing emissions from motor vehicles, which generate almost half of the greenhouse gases produced in Vermont.
In addition to banning idling, the new law asks the Department of Education to develop a model policy to encourage school districts to restrict idling on school grounds by all vehicles.
If this is all the legislature and Governor have time to do then it’s time to send them home for a few years vacation.
The other half being produced by bloviating politicians, ignorant and silly students and pontificating judges.
What’s going to keep the driver warm in winter?
Does the driver now get fined (punished/written up) if she or he idles for two minutes instead of 6? Idles for 23 minutes instead of the allowed 21 minutes? Starts the bus, idles for 6 minutes, then discovers the band isn’t ready and has to wait for another 4, or 5, or 6, or 7 minutes ??? How long are they allowed to idle without penalty? Can they idle if the bus partially loaded but the students are freezing inside? Burning up inside in summer?
This is stupid, almost beyond comprehension. Hopefully someone who understands diesel motors (and diesel, for the moment, is way cheaper than gasoline) will straighten out the idiots.
I can just imagine the wave of warm-fuzzies that swept through the Governor’s staff. Imagine, if you will (sorry Mr. Serling), such a huge boon to Mother Earth, and conceived by our own Vermont school-children. Gaia will be much pleased.
An improperly warmed up engine will use more gas than one that has been properly warmed up. You’re just changing the cause of the waste, not reducing it.
This is a law? So then why do they have so many administrators?
This is truly pathetic, with all that is going on in the world this fool is wasting time on THIS? AND the taxpayers are paying the salary of this buffoon....
Under the same reasoning, school heating/cooling systems should be shut down immediately after classes end each school day and all day on weekends. The school’s computers should be off instead of on standby and the school’s students should be required to unplug their family’s entertainment systems (which usually are in standby mode) and to require their home heating/cooling systems be shut down when the occupants leave.
Somebody should pass this to Bill O’Reilly. He has been trying to get the Governor and Legislature in Vermont to pass Jessica’s Law which will give sexual predators long and mandatory jail sentences.
They haven’t had time to do that but they pass this stupid, trivial law. Most of this state is on the brink of socialism and their local politicians are there already.
How long before they make it a felony?
is there scientific PROOF motor vehicles produce 50% of the ‘greenhouse gases’ produced in VT?
Still, this seems silly.
I hope they made idling at least a class B felony. / sarc
5.56mm
why the tight controls on particulates, especially diesel particulates? These are heavier than air, they fall to the ground... who do diesels contribute to greenhouse gasses?
This is a ‘feel good’ law
If that’s all that’s required to solve “Gore-bull warming” ban all red lights too! In our town I call them “traffic accumulators.” They’re places where cars stop to idle for long minutes when there’s no cross traffic.
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