(A) A student may not ride continuously on a state-owned school bus for more than ninety minutes. With the approval of the Department of Education, the ninety-minute maximum ride time may be exceeded when the area’s geography requires longer than average highway travel because of a circuitous or meandering road network, extremely low population density, or waterway barriers. The ninety-minute maximum ride time may be exceeded when attendance zones are multidistrict or countywide.

(B) The Department of Education annually shall assure that state-owned school buses are routed in the most efficient manner and shall require that they are operated only on adequately maintained and safe public and private accessible highways and streets.