Each day in Pennsylvania, school buses carry 1,500,000 children to and from school, transporting them more than 400,000,000 miles each year. Every year, children are needlessly injured or killed by drivers passing stopped school buses, and 1,000 motorists have their licenses suspended, receive five points on their driving records, and face $250 fines for failing to obey the School Bus Stopping Law.

With schools back in session, remember to pay extra attention to school buses during your commute. Drivers must stop when approaching a stopped school bus with red signal lights flashing and stop arm extended or when approaching an intersection where a school bus is stopped with red signal lights flashing and stop arm extended. In addition, drivers must stop for buses in oncoming traffic on roadways that divide traffic with painted yellow lines or ridged/grooved dividers or on smaller streets without traffic divider indicators. On roadways with physical barriers such as concrete barriers or guide rails or a dividing section containing trees, grass, etc. (such as on West Chester Pike), oncoming traffic may proceed while traffic traveling in the same direction as the stopped school bus must stop. All stopped traffic must be at least ten feet away from the school bus and may not proceed until all children have reached a place of safety and the red lights have stopped flashing and the stop arm has been withdrawn.