Join the U.S. Department of Transportation’s National Highway Traffic Safety Administration’s (NHTSA) safety initiative to educate the public about the importance of school bus safety. While the school bus is one of the safest modes of transportation, illegal school bus passing is a significant threat to children and their caretakers. NHTSA is sharing the following information about illegal school bus passing to help raise awareness about this very real danger.
Talking Points About Illegal School Bus Passing
· In every state, it is illegal for vehicle drivers to pass a school bus while the school bus stop-arm is extended and the red lights are flashing. Failing to stop could result in injury or death to child pedestrians or their caretakers. Vehicle drivers must always come to a complete stop when a school bus stop-arm is extended and the red lights are flashing.
· Obey all traffic signs and signals. More injuries and fatalities occur outside of or near a school bus because a motorist has failed to obey the stop-arm warning or has failed to follow local traffic laws.
· Although school buses are statistically the safest way to transport school children, fatalities still happen. This is why it is critical that drivers follow all driving laws.
· A driver in a school-bus-related crash could be charged with one of the following:
o A violation for passing a stopped school bus
o A related factor of passing a school bus when prohibited by posted signs, pavement markings, or school bus displaying warning not to pass, and the crash was school-bus-related.
· The most dangerous part of the school bus ride is getting on and off the school bus.
· The school bus loading and unloading area is called the “Danger Zone.” Specifically, this is any side of the bus where a child may not be seen by the bus driver and, therefore, is in the most danger. These areas include:
o 10 feet in front of the bus, where the driver may be sitting too high to see a child
o 10 feet on either side of the bus, where a child may be in the driver’s blind spots
o Behind the school bus
· Young children are most likely to be struck because they:
o Hurry to get on and off the bus
o Act before they think and have little experience with traffic
o Assume motorists will see them and wait for them to cross the street