The Vance County Schools’ Transportation Department is joining with state school bus safety officials in reminding all motorists to stop for stopped school buses when they are loading and unloading students on city streets, county roadways, in parking lots and on school campuses.
Derek Graham of the N.C. Department of Public Instruction, stresses that when a school bus is stopped with its mechanical “stop sign” extended and red lights flashing all vehicles must stop. This applies to stopped buses on all roadways and even on school campuses. Graham noted that he is often asked by motorists on whether or not they should stop for a stopped school bus on school grounds.
“The answer is yes,” Graham said. “Passing a stopped school bus on school grounds is a violation just like on the roadway. Motorists can be ticketed and the penalty is five points on the driver’s license.”
North Carolina law governing how motorists must stop for a stopped school bus states, “When a school bus is displaying its mechanical stop signal or flashing red lights and the bus is stopped for the purpose of receiving or discharging passengers, the driver of any vehicle that approaches the school bus from any direction on the same street, highway or public vehicular area shall bring that other vehicle to a full top and shall remain stopped. The driver of the other vehicle shall not proceed to move, pass or attempt to pass the school bus until after the mechanical stop signal has been withdrawn, the flashing red stoplights have been turned off and the bus has started to move.”
Graham adds that in defining what is a “public vehicular area” state law stipulates that this is
any area within the State of North Carolina that meets one or more of the following requirements: (a) the area is used by the public for vehicular traffic at any time, including by way of illustration and not limitation any drive, driveway, road, roadway, street alley or parking lot upon the grounds and premises of any of the following: any public or private hospital, college, university, school, orphanage, church or any of the institutions, parks or other facilities maintained and supported by the State of North Carolina or any of its subdivisions; any service station, drive-in theater, supermarket, store, restaurant or office building or any other business, residential or municipal establishment providing parking space whether the business or establishment is open or closed; and any property owned by the United States and subject to the jurisdiction of the State of North Carolina; (b) the area is a beach area used by the public for vehicular traffic; (c) the area is a road used by vehicular traffic within or leading to a gated or non-gated subdivision or community, whether or not the subdivision or community roads have been offered for dedication to the public; and (d) the area is a portion of private property used by vehicular traffic and designated by the private property owner as a public vehicular area in accordance with state law.