October 16-20 is National School Bus Safety Week
Sending children off to school each morning should not be a worry for parents. And with campaigns like National School Bus Safety Week, the hope is those worries never have to cross a parent’s mind.
The U.S. Department of Transportation’s National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) is working alongside the Citrus County School District and Police Department to urge drivers to slow down and be aware of school buses in Citrus County.
October 16 - 20, 2023 is National School Bus Safety Week, and the Citrus County School District would like to remind area drivers about school bus safety and ways to protect our kids. The theme for 2023 is “Safely Rolling to my Destination.” It’s an important reminder for parents, students, and drivers to be extra cautious on the roads, especially when it’s dark out in the morning when students are boarding buses and drivers are headed to work.
“School bus safety is a shared responsibility,” says Citrus Schools Police Chief Dave Vincent. “With 181 school buses running throughout the week in Citrus County, pick-ups and drop-offs are the most dangerous times of the day for the children who ride a bus to and from school. When a school bus’s red lights are flashing and the stop arm is extended, drivers must slow down and come to a complete stop. This is not a suggestion — it’s the law.”
We want to remind you it is the law to stop for a school bus when its stop sign is showing.
- On a two-lane road, both oncoming and following traffic must stop when the stop arm is extended.
- On a multi-lane road with a left turn lane, all traffic must stop for the bus when the stop arm is extended.
- The only time traffic approaching an oncoming school bus does not need to stop, is if there is a raised barrier such as a concrete divider or at least five feet of unpaved space separating the lanes of traffic.
“Passing a stopped school bus is against the law and could have fatal consequences. Nothing is worth the risk,” says Chief Vincent. “We need every driver to pay attention, because children’s lives are on the line.”
Let’s work together to keep our children safe as they wait to ride the bus to and from school. Slow down and obey the signs. For more information about school bus stop safety, please visit www.citrusschools.org or https://www.flhsmv.gov/safety-center/child-safety/school-bus-safety/ .