Singer/Allen Bill Increasing Penalties For Illegally Passing School Bus Approved By Committee

Legislation that would increase the penalty for illegally passing a school bus has been approved by the Senate Budget and Appropriations Committee. The measure, S-400, is sponsored by Senator Robert Singer (R-30) and Senator Diane Allen (R-7). “We know from school bus drivers that people routinely ignore the flashing red lights that are meant to protect children when they are crossing to and from their buses,” said Singer. “It’s clear that the current monetary penalties, as low as $100, are simply not enough to discourage drivers from breaking the law and putting children at risk. This legislation is an important step that will help stop preventable tragedies from occurring.”

Studies from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration have found that an average school bus is passed illegally once per day in the United States, resulting in an average of 21 children being injured or killed each year while getting off or on their school bus. Half of those children are between the ages of five and seven years old.

Data provided by the New Jersey Administrative Office of the Courts shows that 2,398 drivers were charged with illegally passing a school bus in New Jersey in 2009. In 2008, 2,771 drivers were charged.

“Thousands of drivers are charged every year in New Jersey with illegally passing a school bus, and due to the difficulty of identifying violators to issue tickets, we know that the number of actual occurrences is significantly higher,” said Allen. “Each time a driver breaks the law and passes a school bus with flashing lights, there is the potential that a child could be hurt or killed. We need to make the penalty strong enough that people’s first instinct will be to stop when they see the flashing lights of a school bus.”

Under the terms of the legislation, the fines assessed for illegally passing a school bus will be increased from $100 to $200 for a first offense, and from $250 to $500 for a second or subsequent violation, in addition to existing penalties, which include a five point motor vehicle assessment. TLS.

This content, and any other content on TLS, may not be republished or reproduced without prior permission from TLS. Copying or reproducing our content is both against the law and against Halacha. To inquire about using our content, including videos or photos, email us at [email protected].

Stay up to date with our news alerts by following us on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook.

**Click here to join over 20,000 receiving our Whatsapp Status updates!**

**Click here to join the official TLS WhatsApp Community!**

Got a news tip? Email us at [email protected], Text 415-857-2667, or WhatsApp 609-661-8668.

10 COMMENTS

  1. maybe they should impose stiffer epnalties for school busdrivers that speed, roll thru stop signs and allow children to stand and run around on a moving bus!!!

  2. Who is Allen Bill and has our society become so wrapped up with entertainers that we care about their comments re passing buses illegally.
    I am not an entertainer at all-star my opinion is to impound the car for 6 months and cancel the culprits licence for a year.

  3. Lets focus on:
    Keeping Bus drivers off there cell phones
    Don’t Allow children to stand on the buses, especially next to the drivers.
    Using seat-belts.
    Running red lights to make it to the stops on time.
    Honking horns at drivers who stop when the light turns yellow and stop for the red.

  4. Reply to # 1, you may have a valid point BUT it does not apply here. Apparently you must have gotten caught running school bus lights making you very angry or you are just plain ignorant.
    On all my routes, morning or afternoons I can not tell you how many times drivers run my lights. The legislatures can impose super heavy fines with higher points but as long as a cop is not there to see it. The offender is home free. I used a cam corder to identify offenders but was told this is not admissable in court. I was not told why. To see drivers talking or texting on the cell phones is the number one culprit. Then you have the “racers” trying to get home or wherever they must be at a certain time. . I have noriced driver using the “righy turn on red” for school busses. They think it applies to school busses as well as traffic signals. Thats one reason why I block the intersection.
    My students, I am proud to say, stay seated. from primaries to high school. They are not angels they try but they know my position. Like it or not they learn from me too. If I could get them to wear seatbelts then I would have made a great accomplishment. I’ll be working on that.
    Have a great day.

  5. I am a Lakewood School Bus Driver, to #1 and #3. First of all these are your children that do not sit down, run around the bus. I have told them to sit, I have pulled over to have them sit, I have written them up, BUT nothing works. You need to TEACH your children to behave and show some respect. And just want to add how many times I am passed with my red lights flashing and stop sign out on a daily basis. I do not talk on the phone and you should not either. Right on #3, maybe a few nights in jail would work too. These are your children Lakewood, wake up!!!!!!

  6. Yes , bus driver # (moderated) who can’t keep her phone away from her head every morning at (moderated) is a good example of how the system is failing. We need to enforce the rules that everyone should obey including the drivers that pass a school bus with their reds on.

  7. I was wondering what is the law about stopping for a bus on a 4-lane road (e.g. County Line Rd.), that’s 2 lanes on each side. If the bus is in the right lane on its side and you’re in the right lane on your side, if it’s coming from the opposite direction and has on its red lights can you keep going? Or is that only if there’s a divider in the median (further down County Line Rd. in Jackson)? Even the DMV manuals don’t have the answer to this.

  8. Generally speaking, all traffic in both lanes must stop if the school bus stops with its flashers activated on a two-lane road or any kind of undivided highway. For divided highways (those with a grass or concrete median or those separated by Jersey barriers) only those cars traveling behind or beside the bus in its lane of travel must stop. State and local laws may vary; some jurisdictions require that all traffic stop until all embarking or disembarking children cross the road, regardless of whether or not there is a barrier. Some states (like Washington) allow oncoming traffic to proceed as long as there remains at least one marked traffic lane separating the school bus and the driver.

    Keeping in mind Since the road is undivided there is always a danger of the child running across the road in the wrong direction.

  9. NJ Statute 39:4-128.1 New Jersey

    On highways having roadways not divided by safety islands or physical traffic separation installations, the driver of a vehicle approaching or overtaking a bus, which is being used solely for the transportation of children to or from school or a summer day camp or any school connected activity and which has stopped for the purpose of receiving or discharging any child, shall stop such vehicle not less than 25 feet from such school bus and keep such vehicle stationary until such child has entered said bus or has alighted and reached the side of such highway and until a flashing red light is no longer exhibited by the bus; provided, such bus is designated as a school bus by one sign on the front and one sign on the rear, with each letter on such signs at least four inches in height.

    On highways having dual or multiple roadways separated by safety islands or physical traffic separation installations, the driver of a vehicle overtaking a school bus, which has stopped for the purpose of receiving or discharging any child, shall stop such vehicle not less than 25 feet from such school bus and keep such vehicle stationary until such child has entered said bus or has alighted and reached the side of the highway and until a flashing red light is no longer exhibited by the bus.

    On highways having dual or multiple roadways separated by safety islands or physical traffic separation installations, the driver of a vehicle on another roadway approaching a school bus, which has stopped for the purpose of receiving or discharging any child, shall reduce the speed of his vehicle to not more than 10 miles per hour and shall not resume normal speed until the vehicle has passed the bus and has passed any child who may have alighted therefrom or be about to enter said bus.

Comments are closed.