Parents concerned with school bus safety

JONESBORO, Ark. (KAIT) - Failing to stop for a school bus could earn drivers a ticket. That consequence is minor, however, compared the very real chance of injuring a child when doing so.

No parent should have to wonder whether or not their child is safe while on a school bus. However, some Region 8 parents are worried about traffic while those children are boarding and buses.

Patrolman First Class Ryan Crawford of the Jonesboro Police Department said the only time it’s okay to pass a school bus is on an interstate in spots with a positive barrier. In all other cases, drivers must stop for school buses, even on multi-lane highways.

“You will see people that fail to stop for stopped school buses. It could be an issue if they don’t know if they’re required to stop on major multi lane highways like that,” Crawford said. “Unless there’s a positive cable barrier or positive median dividing that, you are required to stop for that school bus.”

However, that doesn’t let drivers off the hook in Jonesboro. Area schools don’t require school buses drop off children on the interstate, so all traffic is required to stop.

Since Jan. 1, 2021, the Jonesboro Police Department has issued 12 citations and four warnings for passing a school bus while stopped. On Jan. 20, police worked an incident where two children were struck by a vehicle while exiting a bus near Annie Camp Junior High, though the bus did not have its stop sign engaged at the time of the event.

“The school bus laws are designed to help the children. So if you see a school bus like any of these back here that are stopped with their stop signs out and their red, flashing warning lights, you need to stop,” Crawford said.

If you find yourself behind a school bus, be prepared to stop until you can find a safe, legal way to pass. No hurry is worth the possibility of harming a child.

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