City school district sees increase in incidents where motorists are failing to stop for school buses

Dan Daugherty recently reported five incidences in two days to the Cambridge Police Department of motorists failing to stop for school buses while picking up or dropping off students. 

“It’s a pretty high volume of people who run our red lights at a bus stop,” the transportation supervisor for Cambridge City Schools said. "Weekly, I would say probably the least being three and maybe the most being close to eight.” 

Daugherty said some of the troubled spots are the bus stops at South 11th and Gaston Avenue, East Wheeling Avenue, Oakland and Stewart and Oakland and Maple.

While they have been some close calls in the last couple of years there have been no reported cases of a child being injured or struck by a vehicle.

Daugherty and Cambridge Police Officer Chris Loudin report the number of incidences of drivers failing to stop when a school bus has red lights on has dramatically increased. 

Loudin has been working with the district by following school buses, sitting at troubled spots where cars tend not to stop and issuing citations.

"A few years ago it wasn't quite this bad, but it was taking place on a regular basis," Daugherty said. "

"I think this year has been the worst," Loudin said. "I have seen a lot this year." 

"I had a close call (on Sept 27,) very close," Daugherty said. 

According to Daugherty the bus driver was stopped and waiting to give the OK for the student to cross the street. The student wasn't paying close attention to the driver's hand and took a step into the road. A vehicle was approaching the school bus without stopping. Daugherty said the bus driver sounded the horn, and the driver hit the brakes, and swerved towards the curb. 

"We had a near accident," said Daugherty who later that afternoon reported a second incidence. "Unfortunately, it's not uncommon to have a couple on the same day. It's not good and I don't know how we stop it."

There is a procedure in place to ensure safe crossings when students need to cross a street to get on or off the school bus. 

The bus driver puts his right hand on the horn and left hand up where the students can see it. The students are to wait until they see the driver drop his hand before stepping into the road. 

The hand on the horn is to warn the student or an oncoming driver, but mainly to warn the student, Daugherty said. "Part of the instructions given to the students are if you hear my horn sound, stop and look at me for further instructions."

When a bus driver activates the amber/yellow warning lights on a bus, that means the bus will be stopping in 300 feet.

"This is a warning to oncoming traffic and traffic behind the bus that hey I'm about to make a bus stop" Daugherty said. The doors of the bus will open and activate the red warning lights which means there could be students crossing," he added.

Daugherty noted that the while law says motorists have to stop for the red lights, they don’t have to stop for the yellow lights, which are meant to tell motorists be prepared to stop. 

However when the stop sign is out and the reds lights are activated on a bus, motorists are required to stop. Capt. Dave Peoples with the Cambridge Police Department said the Ohio Revised Code (ORC) states motorists are to stop at least 10 feet in front of or at the rear of a school bus, and motorists cannot proceed until the bus resumes motion or signaled to do so by the bus driver.

According to the ORC, motorists can be fined up to  $500 and receive points on their driver's licenses since it's a moving violation, Peoples said. 

"It's not a waiverable offense. You will have to go to court for it, unlike a normal stop sign violation which you can mail in payment," Peoples said. These stops signs (school bus), you have to go in a face a judge."

Peoples also noted making people go to court will take more of their day than if they had just taken a minutes to stop for the bus.

Loudin, and the entire department, has zero tolerance and that if he stops someone for failure to stop for a school bus he will write a citation. 

All the district's school busses are equipped with side mounted video cameras that run the entire time the bus is operating. According to Daugherty, the cameras have the capability to capture the rear end of the vehicle and plate number along with the bus driver and student door. 

"If a car passes while the stops sign and lights are on and we see that on the video, that is our evidence to show they just ran our red lights," Daugherty said. 

When that happens, the bus driver radios that in to Daugherty with the time and location. Daugherty then downloads, views and sends the video footage to the police department or the OSHP depending on the jurisdiction. 

Daugherty said he is consistently viewing video footage from mornings and afternoons routes.

Peoples noted the cameras have a downside. They sometimes when it's dark a camera cannot pick up the vehicle's license plate. However, if the bus driver is able to give a good description of the driver and a plate number, they can still take action.

The law says that if we can identify the driver a citation can be issued off a bus driver's report. If we can't confirm the driver of a vehicle a warning is sent to the registered owner, Peoples added.

"Use common sense. It's not hard, slow down and be patient for the kids," Peoples said. "It's somebody's kid out there. It may not be your kid, but it's somebody's kid. Two of our most vulnerable populations are young and elderly. We got to do everything we can to protect them, and if it means you slowing down a little bit and you get your coffee 30 seconds later so be it."