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School Bus Safety

With the start of the new school year, many students will once again rely on the school bus to take them to and from school. In Pennsylvania 71% of public school children (about 1.3 million students) ride the bus each day. Nationally on any given day, over 450,000 buses travel our nation's roads, carrying over 23.5 million elementary and secondary education students to school. While the rates of accidents involving school buses are statistically low (according to the National Highway Transportation Safety Administration, the national accident rate of school buses is 0.02 per 100 million miles traveled), accidents can and do happen. Each year about 11 children are killed in accidents while riding on their school bus and about 15 students are killed when entering or exiting the bus. Many of these students are struck by the bus they were traveling on, after crossing behind the bus or in the driver's blind spots. Parents should carefully review safety guidelines with their children before the start of each school year to ensure their children understand the rules and stay out of harm's way. 

• Have your children be at the bus stop a few minutes before their bus is scheduled to arrive. When walking to the bus stop they should be reminded to obey all traffic signs and signals. They should also walk on the sidewalks, or if sidewalks aren't available walk on the side of the road facing traffic. Children should cross the road at crosswalks or at the corner of an intersection. Tell your children that they should not run across the street from alleyways or between parked cars – drivers may not be able to see them. 
  
• Avoid dressing your children in lose fitting clothing or clothing and book bags with drawstrings which could get caught around the handrails or in the doors of the bus.
  
• Children should wait to cross the road to board the bus until after the bus has completely stopped and the driver opens the door. Before crossing the street, remind them to look left, right and then left again to make sure all traffic has stopped. They should stay at least 10 feet (or between 5 to 10 giant steps) in front of the bus when crossing the street. When closer than 10 feet to the bus, it is likely the bus driver may not be able to see your child. Also, children should also never walk directly behind the bus or closer than 10 feet along the sides of the bus. 
  
• Remind your children to sit quietly on the bus and avoid creating distractions. Tell them to keep their feet and all items out of the aisles to avoid creating hazards. They should also keep their hands, arms and head inside the bus at all times. 

Drivers should also use caution around school buses or when driving during school hours. Be on the lookout for young children walking or running along the sides of the road. Remember, in Pennsylvania, as in all states, you must stop for a school bus with flashing red lights (unless you are traveling on a divided highway in the opposite lane from the bus). Yellow lights signal that the bus is preparing to stop. When approaching a bus that is stopped to pick-up or drop-off children, stop 10 feet away from the bus and wait until the bus turns off its flashing red lights and begins to move again before continuing. Failure to obey school bus laws will result in a 60-day driver's license suspension, the addition of 5 points to your driving record and a $100 fine.