The Pennsylvania Department of Transportation (PennDOT) recently joined St. Francis Elementary School, Moshannon Valley Elementary School and Dubois Central Catholic Elementary School to learn about School Bus Safety as part of National School Bus Safety Week, which runs Oct. 17 – 21.
Students learned how to be safe in and around school buses. PennDOT representatives, including a traffic control technician and a safety press officer, shared safety tips that include:
- Get to the school bus stop five minutes early, so you won’t have to run across the road to catch the bus;
- When waiting for the bus, stay away from traffic. Line up at least five giant steps away from the curb or the roadway to wait for the bus;
- When the school bus is moving, always stay in your seat. Never put your head, arms or hands out of the window; and
- Talk quietly; do not distract your school bus driver.
As part of the School Bus Safety Week initiative, PennDOT District 2 held a coloring contest in the region. Winners were chosen from each school.
The Moshannon Valley Elementary School winners included: Alyssa Clutter (first place), Cole Tekely (second place) and Kaiden Davis (third place).
The Dubois Central Catholic Elementary School winners included: Audie Benson (first place), Ayanna Gupta (second place), and Mark Corbin (third place).
The Clearfield St. Francis Elementary School winners included: Kindergarten: Brody Lanich (first place), Kendall Spencer (second place), and Charlie Spingola (third place); First Grade: Lexi Unch (first place), Ella Kassab (second place), and Kimber Harvey (third place).
PennDOT urges all motorists to familiarize themselves with Pennsylvania’s School Bus Stopping Law. Failure to obey the law can result in a fine, points on your driving record and a driver’s license suspension. Last year, 701 drivers were convicted for breaking Pennsylvania’s School Bus Stopping Law.
Pennsylvania’s School Bus Stopping Law requires the following:
- Motorists must stop at least 10 feet away from school buses that have their red lights flashing and stop arm extended;
- Motorists must stop when they are behind a bus, meeting the bus or approaching an intersection where a bus is stopped;
- Motorists following or traveling alongside a school bus must also stop until the red lights have stopped flashing, the stop arm is withdrawn, and all children have reached safety;
- If physical barriers such as grassy medians, guide rails or concrete median barriers separate oncoming traffic from the bus, motorists in the opposing lanes may proceed without stopping; and
- Do not proceed until all the children have reached a place of safety.