Be Smart, Safety First
You better be paying attention!
Texas State Troopers are going to be seen trailing school buses this week to catch motorists breaking the law. The law in question is in the Teas Transportation Code – Section 545.066 – Passing a school bus. The question is, do most drivers understand this law?
Basically the law says that you have to stop before reaching the school bus when the bus is operating a visual sign ( that is required).The sign is normally flashing lights or a stop sign that is lowered to the side of the bus. You cannot proceed until (a) the school bus resumes motion; (b) the operator is signaled by the bus driver to proceed; or (c) the visual signal is no longer activated.
There are conditions in which the operator is not required to stop. For those and other information on this law go to: http://law.onecle.com/texas/transportation/545.066.00.html.
In any case, the troopers will be out in force cracking down on folks breaking this law. The concern is with students entering or exiting the bus. If cars are not stopped this can become a deadly situation. In 2012 there were 840 traffic accidents in Texas involving stopped school buses with children entering or exiting.
Violators could be fined as much as $1,250. These fines were increased in September as a result of new legislation. In 2012, there were about 450 tickets issued by troopers to motorists passing a school bus.
So this time of year be especially aware of school zones and school buses and if you need more instruction on current driving laws log in to WirelessDefensiveDriving.com.
