Traffic law question...

Mongo

Mongo

Joined
Nov 5, 2001
Messages
8,969
Hey all, quick question regarding school buses and stopping for them.

Do you have to stop when they have the red lights flashing and stop sign extended if you are in the opposite direction of traffic when there is a double yellow line? (two lanes traffic each way)

Thanks, Mongo
 
Here in NY you must stop in both directions ! This question came up at a time when I moved to an area where there were two lanes in each direction with a wide median between . Technically you had to stop ,but as someone said ,look first behind you before you do !!
 
Here you have to stop unless you are on a divided boulevard, so yes, here we would have to stop in the situation you describe.
 
I was headed through Annandale, VA, some years back on a boulevarded street. There was a school bus stopped on the other side and there was a policeman at the intersection that I was coming toward. The bus was on the other side of the intersection. I stopped for the stop sign and, since the policeman was not in the intersection stopping traffic, I proceeded through. Boy, was he angry. It seems that there was a school back up the cross street out of sight and he was there to allow the kids to cross after they had been dropped off of the bus. There were no signs saying "School Zone" and no indication that ths was a drop-off point for the school, since they usually drop the kids AT the school not down the block and across a boulevarded street. In any case, he chewed me out and then let me go my way. I later wrote to the Fairfax County highway department pointing out that they really needed to mark that school better. I noted some moths later that they had.
 
Traffic laws will vary by state. Even for school buses.

But to answer your question, in my school district, given those circumstances, no you would not have to stop. But California is a different animal than most.

Again, it depends on the vehicle code for your state. And in Illinois, the Vehicle Code states:

(625 ILCS 5/11‑1414) (from Ch. 95 1/2, par. 11‑1414)
(Text of Section from P.A. 93‑180)
Sec. 11‑1414. Approaching, overtaking, and passing school bus.
(a) The driver of a vehicle shall stop such vehicle before meeting or overtaking, from either direction, any school bus stopped at any location for the purpose of receiving or discharging pupils. Such stop is required before reaching the school bus when there is in operation on the school bus the visual signals as specified in Sections 12‑803 and 12‑805 of this Code. The driver of the vehicle shall not proceed until the school bus resumes motion or the driver of the vehicle is signaled by the school bus driver to proceed or the visual signals are no longer actuated.
(b) The stop signal arm required by Section 12‑803 of this Code shall be extended after the school bus has come to a complete stop for the purpose of loading or discharging pupils and shall be closed before the school bus is placed in motion again. The stop signal arm shall not be extended at any other time.
(c) The alternately flashing red signal lamps of an 8‑lamp flashing signal system required by Section 12‑805 of this Code shall be actuated after the school bus has come to a complete stop for the purpose of loading or discharging pupils and shall be turned off before the school bus is placed in motion again. The red signal lamps shall not be actuated at any other time except as provided in paragraph (d) of this Section.
(d) The alternately flashing amber signal lamps of an 8‑lamp flashing signal system required by Section 12‑805 of this Code shall be actuated continuously during not less than the last 100 feet traveled by the school bus before stopping for the purpose of loading or discharging pupils within an urban area and during not less than the last 200 feet traveled by the school bus outside an urban area. The amber signal lamps shall remain actuated until the school bus is stopped. The amber signal lamps shall not be actuated at any other time.
(e) The driver of a vehicle upon a highway having 4 or more lanes which permits at least 2 lanes of traffic to travel in opposite directions need not stop such vehicle upon meeting a school bus which is stopped in the opposing roadway; and need not stop such vehicle when driving upon a controlled access highway when passing a school bus traveling in either direction that is stopped in a loading zone adjacent to the surfaced or improved part of the controlled access highway where pedestrians are not permitted to cross.
 
In PA the only time you can pass a school bus with flashing lights and the stop sign extended is when there is a grass median/concrete barrier between you.
 
You have to stop when you see the school bus lights flashing and the stop sign extended in both directions of traffic. If I am not mistaken, it is a federal law for all states.
 
Thanks Judy... you are totally awesome!

Looks like section (e) explains what I am looking for.
 
You have to stop here in Florida. FullerH, did you hack into the system and do some modifications or have you really posted 11,300+ times? That has to be a record. I'm just aimlessly posting to get a thousand out of her:)
 
So, Lawyer in training Nate... are you saying that the statutes that our Golden Judy posted are outdated? Can you provide the link to the NEW statutes?
 
I saw this exact question in the paper a couple of months ago. It was an "Ask the Traffic Cop" advice column. The answer for the state of Washington was, NO you do not have to stop. It also said that 90% of people would incorrectly tell you that you do have to stop.
 
In simple terms what 'RevolverGeek' said is the law in Canada. Unless there is a central reservation median between the lanes of traffic, all traffic in both directions must stop. If there is a median between the lanes of traffic, only the traffic on the same side as the bus has to stop.

I am new to driving here in Canada and when I saw this for the first time this summer I was amazed as everyone stopped. In the UK, everyone would pull out and speed by.
 
Mongo said:
So, Lawyer in training Nate... are you saying that the statutes that our Golden Judy posted are outdated? Can you provide the link to the NEW statutes?
Click to expand...

OOOPS! Her's were for Illinois... Ignore the first part! Sorry Totally Judy, I saw your location and missed the Illinois reference! :foot:

Anyway, for my rant which still stands...

The stautes are different from VA to WA...

This is one of the reasons I feel we need a Federally based set of road laws and a Federally issued drivers license.
For instance, did you know that in FL (and a couple of other states) you HAVE to either pull over one lane, or if you can't, you have to DEMONSTATABLY slow down when approaching flasshing lights that belong to cops or saftey vehichles? Well, in WA, I don't, and I'm not required when getting a drivers license to know ALL 50 states' road laws.. And this obviously includes those pertaining to passing a school bus! :mad:
 
joeshredd said:
Mongo, TJ's stautes are for Kalifornia, not Illinois... And the stautes are different from VA to WA...
Click to expand...

I beg to differ, joeshredd. I specifically looked up the Illinois Vehicle Code and you will notice at the top of the section, it has the IL initials there.

So there. Just because I live in Kalifornia doesn't mean I don't know other states exist. Sheesh! :p

Judy
 
if one reads section 'e' that TJ posted:
(quote) (e) The driver of a vehicle upon a highway having 4 or more lanes which permits at least 2 lanes of traffic to travel in opposite directions need not stop such vehicle upon meeting a school bus which is stopped in the opposing roadway; and need not stop such vehicle when driving upon a controlled access highway when passing a school bus traveling in either direction that is stopped in a loading zone adjacent to the surfaced or improved part of the controlled access highway where pedestrians are not permitted to cross.(un-quote)

What if it's a suburban road way, with 4 lanes that is only divided by a broken yellow line?
I was taught in VA, where I got driver's ed. that you have to stop in both directions because pedestrians can cross under this situation. And since it was an empty bus, with lights flashing and nobody around, I passed it without thinking on my Driver's Test! Talk about an A**Chewing! :o So that part of the law, at least for VA, stuck with me... And without looking it up, can't tell you what WA's is specifically...
 
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