Mount Pleasant Magazine July/August 2019

www.CharlestonsPrivateSchools.com | www.CharlestonSchoolDirectory.com | www.ed.sc.gov INDEPENDENT SCHOOLS CISD 183 people were injured in collisions involving a school bus, with 15 of those people being killed. Throughout the 2018-2019 school year, random school bus drivers in the tri-county area were asked, off the record, what the most common mistake was other drivers made regarding school buses. The much- repeated answer was drivers ignoring the stop sign and lights deployed on the school bus while making a stop for pick-up or drop-off. Drivers of passenger cars will actually pull around a stopped school bus. “All drivers need to learn where they need to stop for a school bus and when they don’t have to,” said Scott. “We always try to make a right-hand pick up at bus stops when possible, but other drivers need to pay attention. Don’t run into a big, yellow school bus.” Suburban areas have heavy traffic issues, so drivers need to have patience when a school bus stops on the highway or near a busy intersection. Scott pointed out, “A few extra minutes is not worth something bigger happening.” Rural areas do not have a lot of lighting or sidewalks, so the phrase “pay attention” should ring strongly in those locations as well. Lance Corporal Matt Southern of the South Carolina Department of Highway Patrol agreed: “People get impatient in and around school buses. We have to give the school bus drivers the time to safely pick up the students. There is also up to a $1,062.50 fine for anyone caught passing a stopped school bus and six points off your driver’s license.” Drivers should know that, in South Carolina, school buses that are equipped with cameras are clearly able to show the driver, make of the car and the license plate. And the driver can later be charged by law enforcement. Knowing when to stop for a school bus on a roadway is part of your license agreement to be a driver on the roads. “It always depends on the number of lanes on the road as to when you must stop for a school bus,” said Lance Corporal Southern. “More than one lane and going in the same direction of the school bus, you are required to stop because students will only discharge to the right. The opposite side does not have to stop.” Lance Corporal Southern also reminds drivers that in and around school zones, the speed limit is reduced. Typically, around the beginning of each school year there will be heavier congestion as people figure out traffic patterns, so be sure to give yourself some extra time. “From a safety perspective, people need to put the phone down and look up. My biggest concern are the students walking home (who) are not in a protected bus,” further detailed Scott. Lance Corporal Southern confirmed that in the Berkeley County School District, there have been many rear-end collisions with school buses. It is often when fall turns to winter, when we turn our clocks back to standard time, that it becomes more dangerous for students walking to and from their bus stops. The dark mornings and early evenings put our children at greater risk of injuries from traffic crashes. The South Carolina Department of Public Safety has Charts courtesy of South Carolina Dept. of Public Safety.