While the summer holidays are sadly now over, this time of year brings with it the excitement of the first day of school for students, educators and school bus drivers alike.
In honour of the first day of classes, Mark Gentili, the editor of our sister site Sudbury.com, set out to train as a school bus driver with local operator Leuschen Transportation. I mean, who wouldn’t want to try that?
Mark had a blast learning how to drive bus with help from certified trainer Sammi Norman. He couldn’t keep the grin off his face as he drove the 40-foot vehicle around the bus yards (no, not out on the roads). Perhaps this might be his post-journalism retirement career?
If you’re interested in training as a school bus driver, contact Leuschen Transportation or your local school bus operator.
With the start of the 2024-2025 school year, the OPP is urging motorists to be extra cautious and attentive for school buses and students walking to and from school. Drivers should be prepared to stop for school buses.
Since 2022, amber-yellow lights on a school bus will flash to serve as a warning to drivers that the bus will soon come to a stop.
Once the bus comes to a complete stop, the red lights will flash, and the stop arm will be extended which signals to drivers in both directions that they must come to a complete stop.
Drivers are reminded that failing to stop when meeting or overtaking a school bus is dangerous and could have dire consequences.
When driving on a road without a median:
- Drivers travelling in both directions must stop for a stopped school bus with its upper red lights flashing and stop arm out
- When approaching a school bus from the front, stop at a safe distance to let children get on or off the bus and allow them to cross the road
- When following a school bus, stop 20 meters behind the bus
- Do not move forward until the red lights have stopped flashing or the bus begins to move
Drivers and vehicle owners can be charged if their vehicle illegally passes a stopped school bus.
Fines range from $490 to $2,000 plus six demerit points for a first offence and from $1,000 to $4,000, six demerit points and possible jail time up to six months for each subsequent offence.