It’s back to school time, which means school buses are back on the road, so drivers must be extra vigilant with their safe driving practices. Increased traffic congestion, school bus loading and unloading, kids walking to bus stops, and parent pickups or drop offs, increase the need for extra safety precautions. Georgia Department of Driver Services (DDS) has provided precautions that drivers should take to promote safety:

• Pay attention to school zone flashing beacons and obey school zone speed limits.
• Stop behind/do not pass a school bus that is stopped to load or unload children. Drivers are required to stop when approaching or meeting a stopped school bus that has its lights flashing and is loading or unloading passengers. The exception to this rule is when highways are separated in the center by median strips. In this situation, only vehicles following or traveling alongside a school bus in the same direction must stop.
• A warning will be given in advance by the flashing red or amber lights on the front and rear of the bus. After stopping, drivers must remain stopped until the bus resumes motion or deactivates its warning signals and all loading or unloading passengers have cleared the roadway.
• Be cautious when traveling behind or alongside school buses in residential areas or school districts where school buses are likely to be loading or unloading.
• Watch for students gathering near bus stops, and for kids arriving late, walking along the road, crossing the road, or waiting on the side of the road for the bus who may dart into the street. Children often are unpredictable and may ignore hazards and take risks. Safety of the children in the area takes priority over the signals on the bus.
• Obey school bus laws. A conviction of failure to stop for a school bus will add six (6) points to the driver’s motor vehicle record. DDS is authorized to suspend a license if its records or other evidence shows that a driver has accumulated fifteen (15) points within twenty-four (24) months under the point system, including violations committed out of state.

It is imperative that we all slow down and pay attention when children and school buses are present, especially before and after school.