Back-to-School Reminder: Know When to Stop for Buses in Louisiana

(KPEL-FM) - Every August, the roads across Louisiana begin to clutter in the morning and afternoon as school returns to its normal schedule. Parents have to reinforce bed times so children don't stay up late and create a stress-filled morning of rushing to get to the bus stop.

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School buses return to the roads each Fall transporting our precious children to and from school. Some families have the ability to drop their children off at school based on their work schedules, and can sit in the car-rider lines each afternoon, sometimes spilling into the roadways and causing problems for drivers, but that's another story.

Every year, law enforcement sends out notices on social media, make appearances on local media outlets and do what they can to remind drivers of the rules regarding school buses and when drivers need to stop. I'm not sure if everyone receives the message, as there are times that vehicles either don't stop when they're supposed to, or stop when they're not required to.

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One violation is outright dangerous for the students riding the bus, the other is potentially dangerous for drivers heading in the opposite direction, based on the roadway being used. There are countless times you may have experienced the following scenario. You're driving down a multi-lane road (whether it be Eraste Landry, Camellia, Ambassador Caffery or other roadway) that includes multiple lanes as well as a turning lane. You might see a bus in the oncoming lane stop to drop students off, but individuals heading in the opposite direction may stop.

According to the Louisiana Department of Transportation there are instances where vehicles should not stop, but instead proceed with caution when traveling in the opposite direction of a school bus when on a multi-lane road with either a turn lane or median. That being said, I can understand why individuals would stop anyway, for two reasons.

First, due to an overabundance of caution wanting to make sure some child makes an unpredicted wrong turn into traffic, and second because of the potential stigma of continuing down the road. Other drivers may not be familiar with the rule, or disagree with the rule allowing drivers to continue based on circumstance. Either way, the fear is real.

For clarification, the Louisiana State Police have created graphics to help drivers understand when they should (and when they're not required) to stop.