A bus driver in Lakewood reached out to TLS in hopes of getting her message out to the community about the dangers of not stopping for school bus lights.
“Too many people do not stop for school bus lights,” the driver told TLS. “At least three times a week – morning and afternoon – they run my lights on County Line Road. Most times, the cars do not even slow down,” she said.
The driver submitted the attached picture to highlight the dangers of the violation.
[TLS]
Well if bus drivers would actually stop when they put out their lights instead of putting them on 5 minutes before they put out their stop signs…people would be more cautious!!
Don’t think there is any question that people need to stop for the red lights.
But in my personal opinion, I think the driver’s are somewhat responsible for this issue.
I see so many times buses driving for long distances with the yellow lights flashing. Drivers have no idea when they are going to go from yellow to red.
The bus drivers should not turn on the yellow lights until they are stopped & will be turning the red lights on momentarily.
Again, this is not to excuse anyone going thru the red lights, which happens many times on streets like County Line where drivers do not pay attention.
But the yellow lights need to be used with more discretion.
As the saying goes “lead by example”. Until the Lakewood bus drivers begin driving like mentchen, I don’t want to hear it from them!
@Anon @LakewoodRedident agree good points. At least three times a week I see bus drivers driving like animals and passing stop signs and not yielding to cars appropriately
nonsensical comments – it doesn’t matter what the bus does, it matters what YOU do – if the lights are yellow, slow down, if they are red – STOP
Truth is, while I do see the occasional driver going right through the red lights, I think for the most part, people stop.
Also, on County Line Road, I believe that a lot of people think that if the bus is on the other side of the yellow lines, they don’t have to stop – this is of course wrong, but almost forgivable
It is wrong to place all the blame on the bus drivers although the driving habits if some leave a lot to be desired, it is still a crime to pass the red lights and it shouldn’t take a tragedy to wake us up and start driving lawfully
Red Lights mean Stop like Stop signs mean Stop!
if you are driving then you have a responsibility t pay attention to your surroundings and make sure to stop for a bus. whats even worse, which I have seen numerous times on pine st, is when a bus stops and a car behind the bus goes around it. what are they thinking?
When putting your child on the bus please be a mentch and realize that cars behind are waiting. Please don’t stop to shmuz with the driver for 5 minutes. And please don’t hold up the bus because your kid or neighbors kids are a block down. Remember that us drivers have to sit thru 5/10 of these stops a day.
No its not an excuse to pass a bus but it sure helps encourage people to comply if they know that a stop will only take a min rather than 5 min.
would just like to add a personal story:
Last Friday as my second grade son was crossing E 7th in front of his bus while the lights flashing RED, a car coming in the other direction at full speed almost ran him over, Hashem gave him the mindset to stop short on the yellow divided line to let him pass
NO he didn’t stop even after the driver had his horn honking, he just continued as if nothing happened, I call that a ROTZACH
If the bus drivers in this town would stop at all red lights/stop signs then we would have something to talk about it is more of a liability if the drivers of the busses are driving unsafe.
I have many close calls with busses in lakewood and something really has to be done about it!!
If the bus drivers would put on the flashers 60 seconds before they stop as opposed to 1-2 seconds before or leaving them on stop to stop people would have more time to stop!!
I don’t believe people are running them intentionally it’s just the lack of stopping distance vs warning time!
I think that the drivers have no excuse not slowing down even if it takes the bus substantial time to stop after they signal yellow , the only reason they signal yellow far in advance is because so many of the drivers are spacedout and on the phone it takes then time to absorb the yellow and red.
On the flip side of things , I live on county line and the bus drivers never want to wait with their red light long enough before they allow the passenger to embark or disembark , they never wait until my primary son sits on his sit before they start to drive even though I beg , they have immense pressure from county line traffic , which is incorrect. Not only that but for a while I had neighbors that went to public school and the drivers gave them royal treatment , even if the kids weren’t outside waiting , the busses ( there were many kids and many ages in one house) stopped honked their horns , and waited patiently until the kid came and caught the bus ,
I surmise that the drivers were afraid of those kids !!!
Let’s be happy that the drivers have nothing to fear in the realm of violence with our children , let’s be proud and try to do the right thing ..
Perhaps if drivers didn’t abuse their lights to allow other buses to go ahead…..the boy who cried wolf
WAKE UP AND SMELL THE COFFEE!!!!!!!!!!!!
It is illegal to pass a red flashing light from a school bus regardless of how long it’s flashing. Nor dose it matter how long the yellow lights were flashing.
The cops should enforce the law if that’s what it takes.
I don’t think any of the the above excuses or stories would hold up in a court of law.
i ride the busses ,and ending someones life isnt worth your shnitzel sandwich or even a minyan (just in case) or urgent carpool .sorry all intelligent people who whine about drivers