PSV Daily Walkaround Checks: Bus and Coach Checks Beyond the HGV Checklist

Not a clone of the HGV walkaround

The Guide to Maintaining Roadworthiness applies to passenger-carrying vehicles as well as goods vehicles: at least one walkaround every day or once in each 24-hour period of use; defects recorded and rectified before use; nil reporting recommended where practicable. The example items for a public service vehicle are not the goods annex. Do not add trailer landing legs or a goods load-security line to a bus check and call it done.

Train and audit against DVSA’s bus or coach daily walkaround checks. Where more than one driver uses the vehicle, the guide’s handover rules still apply: a second full walk may be unsafe at a bus stop only where a robust defect system already records the first check and later defects or nil reports for each driver.

Passenger-specific differences to check

Doors, exits and markings

Check that doors and emergency exits work, are secure when shut, and open fully. Emergency exit markings should be visible and their lights should work. A goods walkaround does not carry this saloon exit duty in the same way.

Accessibility equipment

Where the vehicle is covered by the Public Service Vehicle Accessibility Regulations, check the wheelchair space and its safety features, the boarding device, priority seats, handrails, and colour-contrasting features such as handrails and steps. You must also know how those features work. Official context is on bus and coach accessibility.

Saloon, communication and comfort

• Seats secure and undamaged; retracting seats retract correctly; seat belts checked where fitted
• Bell pushes sound; stopping and route/destination signs work
• Heating, ventilation and interior lighting as on the DVSA list
• Electronic ticket machine operating correctly where fitted
• Toilet and other fittings where the vehicle has them — keep exits clear

First-aid

A first-aid kit is required on a bus with 16 or more passenger seats (except local services) and on a bus with 9 to 16 passenger seats first used from 1 April 1988. The walkaround page asks that it is present, in good condition, and easy to reach.

Shared exterior and cab items

Mirrors, glass, wipers, warning lamps, steering, horn, brakes and air build-up, height marker, body, lights, tyres and wheel fixings, leaks and AdBlue still matter. They look familiar from HGV work; the training list is still the PSV page, not the goods page pasted into a passenger folder.

Defects, nil reports and retention

The PSV operator licensing guide expects drivers to complete and return defect records correctly. Report defects found on the check and during the journey. Dangerous defects are fixed before the vehicle continues with passengers. Name who receives reports before the shift starts.

Nil-defect reporting is recommended practice so you can show the check happened. Defect reports with assessment and repair follow the roadworthiness guide’s longer retention (at least 15 months). Nil reports are a shorter recommended hold (at least 3 months). Do not mix the two clocks.

How the walkaround sits with PSV maintenance

The walkaround is not the safety inspection. Declared PMI intervals, brake assessments and the passenger inspection manual still apply. Goods PMI articles explain shared roadworthiness ideas; passenger sheets and manuals are the ones for your buses. Start from HGV PMI inspections only for the shared framework, then use passenger inspection practice for the vehicle in front of you. Interval setting is covered for goods in HGV PMI inspection intervals; passenger operators still declare their own interval on VOL.

Common questions

Can we use our HGV walkaround form on coaches?

Not as a complete system. Passenger exits, accessibility equipment, saloon communication and first-aid duties are on the PSV list. Using a goods form alone misses them.

Is a stop-change walk always required?

Drivers taking charge should ensure the vehicle is safe. Where a full walk at a bus stop is unsafe, that is only acceptable with a robust defect system recording the initial check and later defects or nils for each driver — as the roadworthiness guide describes.

Where is the official PSV list?

DVSA’s carry out bus or coach daily walkaround checks page, with the downloadable diagram.