Stop for School Buses – Rockland County to Motorists
Tags: illegal passing, NASDPTS, school bus, school buses, state laws
Do you know why school buses are equipped with STOP signs?
What do you do when you see an activated STOP sign on a school bus?
Lights and signs activate every time school buses stop to load or unload
Today, April 18, 2013, Rockland County Police are monitoring school buses as part of Operation Safe Stop. The annual event promotes safety and increases awareness to the dangers of illegally passing stopped school buses. Drivers who illegally pass stopped school buses will be ticketed and fined. A person found guilty can get five points imposed on his or her license and possible imprisonment of up to 30 days for a first offense and up to 180 days for a third conviction in three years. Passing a stopped school bus with its red lights flashing and the stop sign deployed puts children in danger.
Motorists illegally passing school buses are not isolated occurrences. Each year the National Association of State Directors of Pupil Transportation Services (NASDPTS) conducts a National Stop Arm Violation Count. In 2012 NASDPTS found that nearly 100,000 bus drivers reported 39,760 total stop arm passing incidents, often involving several cars in each incident during the one-day survey.
It is impossible to know why a person decides to run this particular stop sign. Does the driver not see it? Does the driver not know they are supposed to stop? Are these drivers just in a hurry? Some people think most of these drivers simply do not know the law.
When was the last time you read the laws related to stopping for a school bus in your state?
This Ohio woman was caught driving on the sidewalk to avoid a school bus that was loading special needs children. She was caught on video because she did it multiple times!
If you would like to read the entire Rockland County article on lohud.com, the link is: http://www.lohud.com/article/20130417/NEWS03/304170141/Police-ensure-Rockland-motorists-stop-school-buses
If you would like to learn more about NASDPTS, visit: http://www.nasdpts.org/
If you would like to read the laws for your state, visit: https://www.schooltrainingsolutions.com/wp-content/themes/STS_WP_Theme/marketing/pdf/State_Laws_Regarding_Passing_School_Buses.pdf
