Most school bus fatalities occur when children are outside the bus, and 75% of these fatalities involve children under the age of nine. Students are at much greater risk of being injured or killed as a pedestrian in a school bus loading zone than as a passenger in a school bus. Make sure your children know and follow these rules:
- Be on time
- Never run to or from the bus
- Stand back from the curb
- Don’t push or shove
- Stay in your seat
- Don’t yell or shout
- Always obey the driver
- Wait for the driver’s signal before crossing
- Always cross at least 10 feet in front of the bus
- Never crawl under a school bus
IDEAS FOR PARENTS
- Meet the bus.
- Coordinate with other parents to ensure an adult is present at the bus stop every day, especially when children under the age of nine are present.
- Remove drawstrings. Clothing your children like may not always be safe. Drawstrings can catch in playground equipment, fences, school bus doors, and escalators. Remove, shorten, or replace drawstrings with another kind of fastener.
- Get involved in “Be cool. Follow the Rules” bus safety campaign. Distribute tips cards to all the students and parents in your district.
- Involve your school principal. Plan to hold a school bus safety assembly at the beginning of the school year and also in the spring.
- Team up with your school district’s transportation director. Encourage participation in the “Be cool” program. Order a “School Bus Safety Driver’s Guide” for each driver in your district.
- Increase public awareness of school bus safety. Send “Be Cool” ad slicks to editors of your community publications. Contact public service directors or your local cable and broadcast TV stations and urge airplay of the “Be Cool” PSAs.
- Enlist your local police department. Work with your local police department so school bus safety laws are enforced. According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, over 90 million motorists illegally pass stopped school buses each year. Illegal passing of a stopped school bus is a major cause of school bus related fatalities.
- Obtain copies of the flyer “Utah Kids, the School Bus, and Parents” from the Utah Highway Safety Office and distribute them to drivers in your area to ensure that drivers know the rules for when to stop for a school bus.
- If you think a bus stop is a dangerous place, talk with your school administration office or transportation director about changing the location.
- Teach your children to ask the driver for help if he/she drops something near the bus. If a child stoops to pick up something, the driver cannot see them and the child could be hit by the bus.