On the road again: Motorists reminded to heed school bus laws
news@greenecountymessenger.com
With the new school year in full swing, law enforcement is reminding motorists to pay close attention to school bus stop signs and the posted speed limits in school zones.
According to the Administrative Office of Pennsylvania Courts (AOPC), 25,583 citations were issued throughout Pennsylvania for illegally passing a bus or speeding in a school zone over a five-year period between 2018 and 2022.
Locally, the number of citations being handed out for illegally passing school buses has started to creep back up with kids back in classrooms for in-person instruction full time following the pandemic. Fayette County had a slight uptick, from five in 2021, when many children were still learning remotely, and 14 in 2022. In 2019, police in Fayette issued nine citations.
Drivers are required to stop at least 10 feet away from a school bus that has its red signal lights flashing and stop arm extended, according to the state Department of Transportation.
The penalties for violating the law are steep. A conviction calls for a 60-day license suspension, five points on the driving record and a $250 fine.
Trooper Forrest Allison, public information officer for state police in Washington, said motorists should exercise more caution than the mandatory 10-foot stopping distance.
鈥淚 would always recommend a little bit more,鈥� Allison said. 鈥淲atch out for other cars. Not everyone is familiar as much as they should be.鈥�
No citations were issued in Fayette County for speeding through a school zone in 2022, and only three motorists were cited between 2019 and 2021. Trooper Kalee Barnhart, public information officer for state police in Uniontown, said troopers have used 鈥淥peration School Bus鈥� for several years as a tool for enforcement.
鈥淲e ride along with the school buses,鈥� Barnhart said. 鈥淲e sit in the school bus and there is another trooper stationary. If the oncoming operator fails to stop, we鈥檙e able to call out that individual蘑菇视频 car.鈥�
In Greene County, five citations were issued by police for illegal school bus passing. There was just one during the 鈥渁t home鈥� years of 2020 and 2021, and seven in 2019.
Greene had a spike in school zone speeding violations in 2021, with 14 citations, compared to just one each of the previous three years. That number dropped to two in 2022.
In Washington County, 19 citations were issued in 2022, up from nine the previous year. It is not quite as high as pre-pandemic numbers, however. In 2019, police in the county issued 35 citations.
When it comes to speeding in school zones, Washington County actually saw a decrease last year. Thirteen citations were issued in 2022, and 44 in 2021. In 2019, police handed out 30 speeding citations.
Canonsburg police Chief Alex Coghill described the borough as 鈥渦niquely different鈥� when it comes to enforcing these traffic laws, because most of the buses are stopping at intersections with stop signs or traffic lights.
鈥淲e see really few violations here. I鈥檓 not saying it doesn鈥檛 happen, it does happen. Our roadway system just doesn鈥檛 lend itself to violating school bus laws,鈥� Coghill said.
According to Coghill, Canonsburg also sees less school bus traffic since Canon-McMillan Middle School moved to North Strabane Township.
On its website, PennDOT offers several tips for parents and students to stay safe when getting on or off the bus.
Those include getting to bus stops at least five minutes early, never run after the school bus after it has left and always walk at least 10 feet in front of a bus to stay in the driver蘑菇视频 line of vision.