Passing a School Bus in Minnesota: Laws, Fines

Thousands of Minnesotans are heading back to school this week, which means sidewalks and street corners will again be filled with young children waiting for or departing their bus.

In Minnesota, school buses make at least 10,000 school bus trips daily.

In the past five years, there were 533 school bus crashes in Minnesota, resulting in seven deaths (none of which were student bus occupants) and 211 injuries (of which 65 were student bus occupants).

The greatest risk for children is when they walk up to or leave a bus. More children are killed outside of a school bus than they are as bus occupants, according to the Minnesota Office of Traffic Safety.

Motorists must anticipate children in a school bus "danger zone," the area around a bus where most injuries and deaths occur.

The Minnesota Department of Transportation has important reminders about how to drive safely around school buses and what children should know before entering or exiting a school bus:

Laws and Penalties

When a school bus is stopped on a street and is displaying an extended stop-signal arm and flashing red lights, the driver of a vehicle approaching the bus must stop the vehicle at least 20 feet away from the bus.

The driver cannot allow the vehicle to move until the school bus stop-signal arm is retracted and the red lights are no longer flashing.

Passing on the right

No driver may pass or attempt to pass a school bus on the right-hand, passenger-door side of the bus when the school bus is displaying its pre-warning flashing signals.

A driver who fails to stop is guilty of a misdemeanor punishable by a fine of at least $300.

A driver is guilty of a gross misdemeanor if the person fails to stop and commits either or both of the following acts:

(1) passes or attempts to pass the school bus in a motor vehicle on the right-hand, passenger-door side of the bus; or
(2) passes or attempts to pass the school bus in a motor vehicle when a school child is outside of and on the street used by the school bus or on the adjacent sidewalk.

What to Do When Approaching a School Bus:

• Motorists must stop at least 20 feet from a school bus that is displaying red flashing lights or its stop arm is extended when approaching from the rear and from the opposite direction on undivided roads.
• Red flashing lights on buses indicates students are either entering or exiting the bus.
• Motorists are not required to stop for a bus if the bus is on the opposite side of a separated roadway (median, etc.) — but they should remain alert for children.
• Altering a route or schedule to avoid a bus is one way motorists can help improve safety. In doing so, motorists won’t find themselves behind a bus and as a result, potentially putting children at risk.
• Watch for school crossing patrols and pedestrians. Reduce speeds in and around school zones.
• Watch and stop for pedestrians — the law applies to all street corners, for both marked and unmarked crosswalks (all street corners) — every corner is a crosswalk.

When waiting for the bus: Be patient, stand back from road and no running or rowdy behavior.

When on the bus: stay seated, listen to the driver and use quiet voices.

It's important for parents to discuss and demonstrate pedestrian safety with their children and reinforce safe crossing after exiting a bus:

• When getting off a bus, look to be sure no cars are passing on the shoulder (side of the road).
• Before crossing the street, take five "giant steps" out from the front of the bus, or until the driver’s face can be seen.
• Wait for the driver to signal that it’s safe to cross.
• Look left-right-left when coming to the edge of the bus to make sure traffic is stopped. Keep watching traffic when crossing.

Why Don't School Buses Have Seat Belts?

• School buses are larger and heavier, which means that the mass and weight of the bus is designed to take the bulk of the crash force. They are also far less likely to rollover in a crash.
• School buses must be federally regulated to provide for compartmentalization. Compartmentalization means that the interior of large school buses must provide occupant protection so that children are protected without the need to buckle up. This is done through strong, closely spaced seats, energy absorbing foam seat backs, and a 24-inch seat height. Visualize this by thinking how an egg carton protects the eggs.

• The chassis of the school bus is designed to separate from the body of the bus in a crash to slow down and spread the crash forces over the entire body of the bus.

Image: Bill McChesney via Flickr /Creative Commons