Student Crossing on a Two-Lane Road
You are driving a 72-passenger school bus on a two-lane county road in Kansas. It is 3:45 p.m., and 14 students are aboard. At the next stop, a first-grader must cross the road to reach her home on the left side. You activate the amber warning lights 200 feet before the stop and stop with the red lights flashing and the stop arm extended. A pickup truck behind you is following too closely. A car approaching from the opposite direction is slowing but has not stopped. The first-grader is standing at the front of the bus, ready to step down. The route is already 10 minutes late. The road has no shoulder, and your driver-side mirror shows the pickup closing. You must decide when to release her.
1. When should you open the door and signal the first-grader to cross?
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The red lights and stop arm are warnings, not a barrier. I would keep the door closed and keep the child at the front until both the pickup behind me and the oncoming car have actually stopped. I would check the driver-side mirror for the pickup, the left-side and front mirrors for the oncoming car, and the crossing area itself. Only when both vehicles are stopped and I can see no other hazard would I open the door, step into a safe position, and give the child a clear hand signal to cross. If the pickup keeps closing, I would not release her; the schedule does not justify putting a first-grader into traffic.
2. The oncoming car slows but does not stop. What do you do?
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I would treat the car as a live hazard and not release the student. I would watch the car's speed and path, keep the door closed or hold the student at the step, and be ready to sound the horn if the car looks likely to pass the stop arm. I would not wave her across just because she is ready. If the car passes, I would keep her on the bus, record the plate if possible, and report the violation to dispatch and the school. Once the car has cleared and traffic is stopped, I would restart the crossing procedure and recheck the mirrors before signaling her.
3. After she crosses, what checks and actions do you take?
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I would count the students on the bus and confirm the first-grader has reached a safe point away from the bus, outside the danger zone. I would check both directions again, close the door, retract the stop arm, cancel the red lights, and recheck mirrors before moving. I would not accelerate to make up the 10 minutes; that is how the next mistake happens. If a vehicle has passed the stop arm, I would complete the route safely and report the incident afterward, since the report is less important than controlling the bus now.