Sharing the Road with School Buses

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Sharing the Road with School Buses

• A Ten-Minute Training Topics Presentation

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Statistics

• An average of 19 school-age children die in
  school transportation related crashes each year5
  occupants of school transportation vehicles and
  14 pedestrians. More school-age pedestrians have
  been killed between the hours of 3 p.m. and 4
  p.m. than any other time of day. National
  Highway Transportation Safety Administration
  (NHTSA)

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Statistics

• Approximately 26 million elementary and
  secondary school children ride school buses daily
  throughout the United States, twice a day.
  School Transportation News

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Statistics

• A one-day study was conducted in the State of
  Virginia.
• On that day, 3,394 Virginia motorists illegally
  passed a stopped school bus. Multiplying the
  results by a 180-day school year brings the total
  number of illegal passings sic to over 600,000
  a year.
• Of the 3,394 total in September, 187 were
  right-side passes, on the side of the bus
  students use to enter and exit.  - NHTSA

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Overview

• Although the standard yellow color wasnt
  uniformly adopted until 1939, school buses have
  been around since 1915.
• Annually, school buses transport about 26 million
  pupils to and from school, and do so with a
  superior track record of safety results.

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Overview

• By design, school buses make frequent stops to
  load and unload students, and this can,
  unfortunately, slow down traffic during morning
  or afternoon rush hours.

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Overview

• Frustrated or impatient motorists and commercial
  drivers may be tempted to pass a stopped school
  bus that is actively loading or unloading pupils.
  
• This is dangerous, and in all US states, illegal.

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Overview

• By law, when a school bus stops to drop off or
  pick up students, motorists must stop too.
• Improper passing around school buses is under
  reported and is a serious problem.
• In one study, over 10,000 vehicles illegally
  passed stopped school buses in 58 of the 67
  school districts involved in the statewide study.
  That worked out to an average of one illegal
  passing situation per bus per day.

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Overview

• While most school districts work very hard to
  minimize the number of stops where children must
  cross the road, kids are at risk when drivers
  illegally pass school buses.

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The Law

• Everyone who drives a vehicle must observe
  traffic safety rules around school buses.
• Every one of the 50 states has a law making it
  illegal to pass a school bus that is stopped to
  load or unload children.

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The Law

• In every state, bus drivers use yellow flashing
  lights to alert motorists that they are preparing
  to stop to load or unload children.
• Bus drivers use red flashing lights and an
  extended stop sign arm to signal to motorists
  that the bus is stopped and that children are
  loading or getting off the bus.

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The Law

• All states require the traffic in both directions
  to stop on undivided highways when students are
  getting on or off a school bus.
• State law varies in what is required on a divided
  highway and what constitutes a divided highway.
• However, in all cases on divided highways,
  traffic behind the bus (traveling the same
  direction as the bus) must stop.

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The Law

• While the number of actual crashes caused by this
  violation is low, the potential for injury or
  death is high.
• Bus drivers have been painfully aware of the
  frequent disregard for this law and since the
  1990s several states have commissioned studies
  to detail how many violations occur during a
  typical school day.
• The numbers are staggering many people blow
  right past stopped school buses each day.

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Lookout for Stops

• In a perfect world, all school bus stops would be
  off the main highway and clearly marked to
  provide additional notice to other motorists.

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Basic Tips Stops

• Unfortunately, many school bus stops are not
  clearly marked with signs or notices.
• Children may gather on the
  side of rural highways or
  suburban side streets while
  waiting for their bus
  to arrive.

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Unpredictability of Children

• Children walking to or from their assigned
  pick-up/drop-off locations are comfortable with
  their surroundings (near their home) therefore,
  they may take more risks, ignore hazards, or fail
  to look both ways when crossing mid-block.

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Unpredictability of Children

• Groups of children waiting for their bus may play
  games and ignore traffic conditions.
• Also, tardy children who may risk missing their
  bus may run and not pay attention while trying
  to get their drivers attention.
• This could cause them to run out into the roadway
  without looking.

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Unpredictability of Children

• Children are easily distracted (i.e. hand held
  electronic devices, portable music players, etc.)
  and could jeopardize their own safety you need
  to be extra alert on their behalf whenever
  possible.

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Time of Day

• Remember that school buses may run at varied
  times throughout the day field trips, sporting
  events and so on may place buses on the road as
  early as 6AM or after dusk when it may be harder
  to spot children.
• Additionally, most school bus operations occur
  during the half of the year when daylight is
  shortest.

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Non-Traditional Vehicles

• In some areas of the country (typically near
  larger urban centers) it is possible to find
  pupils riding on transit system buses to get to
  and from school.

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Non-Traditional Vehicles

• These transit buses do not have the same warning
  equipment (swing arms, flashing amber and/or red
  lights, etc.) therefore, it may not be obvious
  that students/pupils are on board.

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Non-Traditional Vehicles

• Also, some special education facilities may use
  vans, sedans and other types of vehicles to
  transport children.

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Non-Traditional Vehicles

• These vans might or might not be marked as
  transporting pupils, and they may follow the same
  procedures as traditional buses (i.e. an unmarked
  van might stop at a railroad grade crossing
  causing drivers behind them to slam on their
  brakes, etc.)

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Summary

• The school season has begun throughout most of
  the country and kids are going to be on the
  streets waiting for their bus or walking home
  from the bus stop.

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Summary

• The National Highway Transportation Highway
  Safety Administration has these suggestions
• Watch for children walking in the street and
  congregating near bus stops.
• Be alert. Children may dart into the street with
  out looking for traffic.
• Vehicles must stop when the bus displays flashing
  red warning lights and extends the stop signal
  arm. Vehicles may not pass until the flashing red
  lights and signals are turned off.

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Summary

• Suggestions (continued)
• Vehicles traveling in the same direction as the
  bus are always required to stop. In some states,
  vehicles moving in the opposite direction on a
  divided roadway are also required to stop. Check
  the law in your state.
• Never pass on the right side of the bus, where
  children enter or exit. This is illegal and can
  have tragic results.
• Violation of these laws can result in a citation
  and fine. In many places, school bus drivers can
  report passing vehicles.

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