Maine School Bus Drivers Urge Folks To Talk With Their Kids About Bus Safety Before The Year Starts

It's happening, and for some, it's even as we speak!

"Back To School' time is here. In the next two weeks, kids head back to school. For many, this will be their first year as both students and parents of school-aged children.

With that comes a bunch of new challenges, experiences, and information. There are important things to know about heading off to school.

Read More: Safety Tips To Remember As Maine Kids Start The New School Year

One area local school bus drivers hope parents start talking with their kids about before the school year starts is the topic of bus safety.

Helena Stevenson Strang has been a school bus driver for MSAD 75 in the Midcoast area of Topsham, Bowdoin, Bowdoinham and Harpswell) for 7 years.

She says when it comes to back-to-school school bus safety, there are two factors to think about: the kids and the adults (drivers).

While most kids are used to riding in vehicles wearing seatbelts, and remaining strapped into a seat, riding on a school bus is a very different experience. Strang says parents should be readying their young students for the experience of riding without a seat belt.

"Especially in the grammar school kids, they are just all over the place! I've seen them crawling on the floors. I've seen them crawling on the seats, turning around and talking to the kids behind them."

She says one of the issues behavior like this creates is a distraction for the school bus driver.

"My problem is now I'm looking. I'm looking at what they're doing instead of looking at the road. That creates a very distracted situation for me which makes it unsafe for them."

Strang says one of the things she hopes parents can really communicate to their kids with regards to riding the bus is just how important it is to stay in the seats and try to keep distracting movements at a minimum.

She says there are cameras on a lot of the buses, and bus drivers can review problematic behavior after the fact, but in the moment, getting kids to and from their destination safely is top priority.

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Strang says kids causing damage or making messes on the bus can be another distracting challenge drivers face. She says that another important aspect about being a good school bus passenger that parents should discuss with their kids.

"I've had kids write on my seats, which is not fun because then I'm responsible for cleaning that up. Tearing paper up and then making a mess back there. Sometimes it's just little things, but we are responsible for our buses. We have to clean our own busses, to when kids do things like that, it just adds to the time in our days."

She says if parents talk to their kids about bus safety before the start of the year, and then review with their kids in those first few weeks, when bus drivers and teachers are also talking about it with students, reiterating those lessons are important, she says.

Strang says she thinks parents should keep that dialogue going with their kids throughout the school year.

"As we go through the school year, it's really important for parents to ask 'Hey, how are things going on the bus?' They talk about school but never really ask how things are going on the bus. Are they being good? 'Is everyone being safe? Are you being safe?' That's important to follow up."

Then there's the issue of the adults on the road, those who are supposed to share the roadways with school buses.

Strang says that she's been noticing an uptick in distracted driving over the past few years. That coupled with impatience is a dangerous recipe for those whose job it is to transport students to and from their destinations.

"People just don't think. They see the yellow lights and they think 'Oh, I've got time. Let's go faster!' No, if you see the lights are yellow, it means I am coming to my stop. Just stop. It's not brain surgery."

Strang says she feels the importance of stopping for a bus isn't emphasized enough to younger drivers.

"I've seen people on straightaways...when your yellow lights are flashing...and they don't think they need to stop. They go right through them...We've even had people pass the bus on the right side, where the kid's getting off the bus, because they couldn't stop in time."

The major culprit she says is folk who are on their cell phones while driving.

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She says buses equipped with cameras are making it a habit to report those drivers.

"We do pull those tapes, and we do get those license plates of those people who do that. And they will get fined for that."

She says it's a safety issue, and she's had to pull her kids back and have them wait until cars pass the bus to have them exit the vehicle and cross the road.

"If you see a bus in front of you, just stop. It's never gonna pay to think you can beat my turning on the red lights. Just stop."

She says teachers and bus drivers do teach kids how to keep an eye out for the bus drivers signals, to look both ways before crossing the street, etc. But those lessons can be hard for younger kids, who tend to be a little more compulsive by nature, to absorb initially.

Folks with the organization Student Transportation Of America say that it's not just the responsibility of the students and the parents to go over bus safety protocol. They say the drivers should take a moment to review some of the rules of sharing the road with school buses.

"Flashing yellow lights mean the bus is preparing to stop. Slow down and be ready to stop. Flashing red lights and an extended stop arm mean students are getting on or off. Stop and wait — it’s the law. Stay alert in school zones and neighborhoods, especially during pickup and drop-off times."

Folks who run The Bus Runner Page on Facebook says that along with talking with kids about the safe zones of where to enter and exit the bus, and where to cross, parents need to make sure kids know where their stop is.

"Do NOT send your child on the bus without knowing their home address — or having it written down and placed in their backpack."

"With school back in session, drivers need to stay aware of their surroundings.
Kids will be walking to school or to bus stops. At intersections where kids may be crossing the street slow down and use extra caution, especially if there is no crossing guard."

Strang says its important to review the rules of riding a school bus early and often, especially for those kids who may not ride the bus every day, but only on occasions like field trips or special events. That way all the kids have a chance to ride safely and enjoy their trip.