It is school time again which means school buses will be out on the road in the mornings and afternoons. Let's all go back to school and review the laws having to do with a driver must stop for a school bus. Failing to follow the law won't get you an "F," but it will get you a $165 fine and possible license suspension.
Florida Statute Section 316.172 governs stopping for school buses. The Florida law states:
"(1)(a) Any person using, operating, or driving a vehicle on or over the roads or highways of this state shall, upon approaching any school bus which displays a stop signal, bring such vehicle to a full stop while the bus is stopped, and the vehicle shall not pass the school bus until the signal has been withdrawn. A person who violates this section commits a moving violation, punishable as provided in chapter 318.
(b) Any person using, operating, or driving a vehicle that passes a school bus on the side that children enter and exit when the school bus displays a stop signal commits a moving violation, punishable as provided in chapter 318, and is subject to a mandatory hearing under the provisions of s. 318.19.
(2) The driver of a vehicle upon a divided highway with an unpaved space of at least 5 feet, a raised median, or a physical barrier is not required to stop when traveling in the opposite direction of a school bus which is stopped in accordance with the provisions of this section.
OK, sections 1(a) and 1(b) are pretty easy to understand. If you are going the same way as a school bus with flashing red lights and has the stop arm extended, you must stop behind the bus and cannot move until the bus retracts the stop arm and turns off the flashing red lights. However, many people fail to read section 2 (especially those driving on Belcher Road) and end up with tickets. In a nutshell, the law states that if you are going the opposite way as a school bus that is flashing red lights and has the stop arm extended, you must stop in front of the bus and cannot move until the bus retracts the stop arm and turns off the flashing red lights UNLESS (a) you are on a divided highway and the one-way roadways are separated by an unpaved space at least five feet in width, OR you are on a divided highway and the one-way roadways are separated by a physical barrier.
But, what is a physical barrier? A barrier is a continuous permanent or semi-permanent obstruction that makes it very difficult for a vehicle or pedestrian to go from one roadway to another. Examples of a barrier are a chain-link fence or a concrete abutment. Traffic cones or trees in a medium are not barriers. Painted lines, pavement markings, and turn lanes are NOT barriers.
How about the 5-foot unpaved space? An unpaved space is a grass, dirt, gravel, water, etc. division between one- or multi-lane roadways going in opposite directions. This space may either be a swale lower than the roadways or a median raised above the roadways. While "paved" sometimes refers only to concrete surfaces, in this context "paved" refers to any hard surfaced permanent ground cover.
Although you now know the law, remember that many drivers will fail to follow it. Thus, to prevent a rear-end car accident, make sure you alert the drivers behind you when you are stopping for a school bus. You can be the best driver in the world, but can still be injured in an automobile accident caused by someone who is not. Drive safely and watch out for those who don't.
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