Vigilance Key When It Comes To Sharing Roads With School Buses

Schools back in session mean school buses are back on the roads.

Livingston Police Chief Greg Etheredge said that when it comes to sharing the roads with buses, caution is key.

“The best thing to do is just watch,” Etheredge said. “When you see those big yellow school buses slow down and keep a little distance back from it and be vigilant of the young students around and the other drivers that are oncoming.”

Etheredge said passing a stopped school bus on a two-lane road is illegal, and that those who violate the law could face consequences. He said that he wants people to recognize that it may take longer to travel due to the return of school traffic, and that he asks the community to exercise both patience and vigilance when on the roads during school traffic.

“We’ve been very fortunate that we haven’t had many accidents involving school buses,” Etheredge said. “And we get some school traffic accidents, most of them occur in the parking lot or a couple fender-benders that happen from that. We’re fortunate that this year we’ve not had any yet. But in terms fo school buses, again, keeping your distance and just slowing down and stopping and being cautious, that to me is the best advice.”

Current Tennessee law 55-8-151 states,” The driver of a vehicle upon a highway, upon meeting or overtaking from either direction any school bus that has stopped on the highway for the purpose of receiving or discharging any school children, shall stop the vehicle before reaching the school bus, and the driver shall not proceed until the school bus resumes motion or is signaled by the school bus driver to proceed or the visual signals are no longer actuated.”

This means that drivers in both directions must stop when a school bus stops to pick up or drop off children, with the exception of multi-lane divided streets. Etheredge said while there aren’t many four-lane roadways in the Livingston area, there may be more rural areas that have roads of that nature.