The State Council approved a draft of regulations on school bus safety management in a meeting held Wednesday, Xinhua reported.

The draft regulation, which draws from experiences gathered in China and overseas, asks local governments to ensure that students attend nearby schools or boarding schools so as to reduce students' traffic risks.

For rural areas that cannot ensure close proximity of the school or convenient public transport, measures are to be taken to ensure students' access to school buses.

The new regulations set out stricter requirements for the school bus drivers' abilities and qualifications and rules for the buses' maximum speed and capacity. School buses have also been given the right-of-way on the road.

(China.org.cn, CNTV March 31, 2012)

据新华社报道，国务院在周三举行的一次会议上批准了校车安全管理条例草案。

该条例草案是通过学习国内外相关经验而制定的。条例草案要求地方政府保障学生能就近入学或在寄宿学校，以减少学生交通风险。

那些不能保证学生就近入学，或不能提供便利公交的农村地区，必须采取措施保证学生获得校车服务。

该条例对校车驾驶员的资格能力做出更为严格的要求，并对校车的最高时速和载客量做了规定，还赋予校车通行优先权。