Garrett County Traffic and Transportation Advisory Committee Asks Public to Stay Alert for School Buses

School safety includes a whole range of locations and times – getting to school, safety inside and around the actual school, getting home again, and school related after-school activities. We all hope for overall safety as Garrett County students enter the 2023-2024 school year beginning on Tuesday, Sept. 5th. Many of us feel like school safety is out of our control, but the Garrett County Traffic and Transportation Advisory Committee is asking for everyone’s help. Sharing the road with school buses puts responsibility on all motorists to obey all traffic signs and signals, including the flashing lights on the bus. 

Motorists should pay close attention on all roads and in designated school zones, especially in the mornings and afternoons when schools open and close. 

According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration about 25 million students nationwide start and end their day with a trip on a school bus. Many built in safety features help protect students on school buses, including flashing red lights, cross-view mirrors, stop-sign arms, high crush standards, rollover protection features, and high visibility colors. School buses are designed to protect their student passengers through compartmentalization – closely spaced seats and high, energy-absorbing seat backs. The combination of all these safety features means students are about 70 times more likely to get to school safely if they take the school bus instead of traveling by car.

The Maryland Highway Safety Office reports that although school buses are designed to prioritize safety, children are vulnerable when waiting for, boarding, or leaving the bus. During those times they become pedestrians and have the greatest danger of being hit by traffic. 

When a school bus prepares to pick up or drop off children, it alerts drivers with flashing yellow lights. Drivers should use extreme caution, slowing and preparing to stop, because children may enter the roadway unexpectedly. Once the bus stops, it extends a stop signal (stop-arm) and the flashing lights change to red — requiring all drivers to stop no closer than 20 feet from the bus. The red lights signal children will be getting on or off the bus and drivers must completely stop if the bus is stopped with its red lights flashing and the motorist is meeting or overtaking the bus. The only exception is when there is a physical barrier dividing a four-lane roadway, then only vehicles following the bus are required to stop. There are no bus routes in Garrett County with this exception.

Motorists may not pass by the bus until the stop signal and flashing lights are off and the bus is moving again. Violators of these laws are fined $250 if caught on camera, and up to $570 and 3-points on the driver’s license if stopped by police.

In an effort to keep school children safe, the Maryland State Police, Garrett County Sheriff’s Office, Maryland Natural Resources Police, and Oakland Police Department will each have additional patrols out to enforce traffic laws near schools and around school buses.