Share the Road this Fall with School Buses

As businesses and schools reopen this fall after a year of COVID closures, we felt it was important to publish a reminder about what and who has the right of way on the roads.

First and foremost: SLOW DOWN

It’s easy to feel overwhelmed with new school schedules and concern about being on time for in-office work, and overwhelmed drivers tend to speed and take risks with their driving. Nothing that happens in a normal day is worth the risk to yourself that comes with harried driving.

Some Friendly Reminders about Sharing the Road with Pedestrians

• Stay behind the crosswalk when stopped at an intersection. Forcing pedestrians to go around you could put them in the path of moving traffic
• In a school zone when flashers are blinking, stop and yield to pedestrians crossing the crosswalk or intersection
• Never pass a vehicle stopped for pedestrians
  
  

Sharing the Road with School Buses

If you're driving behind a bus, allow a greater following distance than if you were driving behind a car. It will give you more time to stop once the yellow lights start flashing. It is illegal in all 50 states to pass a school bus that is stopped to load or unload children.

Also please keep in mind that the area 10 feet around a school bus is the most dangerous for children. Give the children room to safely exit the bus without needing to walk around or behind your car. Children often are unpredictable, and they may exit the bus in such a way that they can’t be easily seen by drivers.

By exercising a little extra care and caution, drivers and pedestrians can co-exist safely in school zones. DII provides safety alerts and information to help reduce your own personal risk and to increase the safety of those around you.