Understand the safety rules of going to school

  • Published
  • By Staff Sgt. Jacob Chromy
  • 66th Air Base group Safety Office
HANSCOM AIR FORCE BASE, Mass. --  With kids returning back to school last month, the 66th Air Base Group Safety Office would like to remind drivers to be on the lookout for children when driving on local roads. In particular, as the weather changes and days get shorter, kids are often walking to school or standing at a bus stop in the darkness.

According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, riding a bus to school is 13 times safer than riding in a passenger vehicle and 10 times safer than walking to school. However, children are not usually injured in the school bus, but after they exit the bus -- specifically the 10 foot radius around a school bus is where most children are injured.

According to the National Safety Council, children who lose their lives in bus-related crashes are pedestrians who were hit by the bus or by motorists illegally passing a stopped school bus.

Knowing state laws and procedures for sharing the road safely with school buses is necessary to ensure kids stay safe.

The NSC emphasizes the laws each year in hopes of preventing bus-related accidents:

· It is illegal in any state to pass a school bus that is stopped to load or unload children.

· School buses use yellow flashing lights to alert motorists that they are preparing to stop to load or unload children. Red flashing lights and an extended stop sign signals to motorists that the bus is stopped and children are getting on or off the bus.

· All states require that traffic in both directions stop on undivided roadways when students are entering or exiting a school bus.

· Stop your car far enough from the bus to allow children the necessary space to safely enter and exit the bus.

· Be alert. Children are unpredictable. Children walking to or from the bus are usually very comfortable with their surroundings. This makes them more likely to take risks, ignore hazards or fail to look both ways when crossing the street.

· Never pass a school bus on the right. It is illegal and could have tragic consequences.

While on the bus, children should follow a few simple rules to help the bus driver get children to school safely:

· Go directly to a seat. Remain seated and facing forward for the entire ride.

· Talk quietly to avoid the bus driver becoming distracted.

· If you need to talk to the bus driver, wait for the bus to stop, raise your hand and call the driver's name.

· Never throw things on the bus or out the windows. Never play with the emergency exits.

· Keep the aisles clear at all times.

· If there is an emergency, listen to the driver and follow instructions.

Responsibility for being safe is not just the job of adults. Children need to understand the safety rules of going to school, as well.

For children that walk to school, parents should establish rules and review them often. The plan should include the following: look both ways before crossing streets, walk on sidewalks only, never walk in between parked cars and never run out from a sidewalk in front of cars. Parents should practice walking to school with their children.

The Safety Office would like to make this year a safe and successful year for children. For more information on safety tips, call 781-225-5584.