Students Crossing a Four-Lane Divided Road
You are driving a 20-passenger school bus with 14 students aboard on a four-lane divided road with two lanes in each direction and a 30-foot raised median. The posted speed limit is 45 mph. Your stop is on the right shoulder, but six students live on the left side and must cross both westbound lanes to reach their homes. It is 7:20 a.m., daylight, dry pavement. You stop with the front door just past the students' waiting point, activate the amber warning lights, then the red lights and stop arm. In your left mirror, a pickup about 180 feet behind in the right lane is not slowing and is closing fast. The students are standing at the bus door, waiting for your signal.
1. What should you do about the students and the pickup right now?
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Hold the students at the door. The red lights and stop arm are on, but a stop arm does not physically stop a vehicle. The pickup is 180 feet back and closing, and if it is not slowing, it may pass. Do not give the hand signal to cross. Sound the horn if the pickup continues to close, and watch both directions. The students should stay on the bus or at the door until every lane that they must cross is stopped. If the pickup passes, note the plate and report it, but do not let students cross in front of it.
2. Is this stop location appropriate, and what should have been done before the route?
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The location is high-risk: students must cross two westbound lanes of a 45 mph divided road. Route planning should avoid having students cross a divided highway; a stop on the students' side, or a different stop, is safer. Before the route, you should have identified this conflict and raised it with the school district or dispatcher. At this moment, do not unload into an unsafe crossing. If traffic will not stop, keep students aboard and call dispatch; consider proceeding to the next safe stop rather than releasing them here.
3. What is the correct crossing procedure, and when should you use the horn?
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Only after all traffic in both directions has stopped should you signal the students to cross. They should cross in front of the bus, far enough ahead that you can see them, at least 10 feet, and never behind the bus. Students should walk, not run. Keep your eyes on them and count them. Use the horn only as a warning if a vehicle starts to move or a student steps into danger. Do not move the bus until every student is clear of the bus and off the roadway.