IDAHO — Back to school season means buses and students are back on the road so we're sharing some safety tips for students riding on the bus and drivers.
Brent Carpenter, the operations manager for Brown Bus Company, said one thing parents and students should do before the first day of school is find their bus stop.
“I encourage them to you know walk their kids to and from multiple times. Identify this big tree, this color house, whatever works best for their kids so they know as they're riding the bus, they're paying attention, they know that they're getting close to their bus stop,” Carpenter said.
Students should also be aware of the safe way to get on and off of their bus. He said they should stand away from the road when waiting at their bus stop.
“The bus is coming, we want to make sure that they’re staying at that spot and don’t start to board until the bus has come to a complete stop and the door opens,” Carpenter said.
If a student needs to cross the street, they should take a few big steps away from the bus.
“We want them to have ample room for the driver to be able to see them. And then they’re going to cross, waiting for the driver’s signal. They’re going to stop here at the corner of the bus before proceeding and then once the driver signals them, then they’ll proceed,” he said.
For cars, school buses back on the roads mean watching out for a bus stopped with its stop sign out and lights flashing.
“Like so many people do at intersections: step on the gas and let’s get through this yellow light. When they see that amber light, they need to be slowing and preparing to stop,” Carpenter said.
If you’re driving on a road with three or fewer lanes, all cars in both directions have to stop for a school bus. But, if you’re driving on a road with four lanes or more, traffic going in the same direction as the school bus must stop and oncoming traffic can keep moving.
