School Bus Safety

For those of us with small children I’m sure the past few weeks have involved a lot of shopping, planning, and excitement for the new school year. Along with all the excitement comes the added concern and risk associated with the transporting of our precious cargo. Approximately 14,000 school buses carry close to 800,000 students each year in the North Carolina. That is why North Carolina places such a large emphasis on school bus safety.

Charlotte Mecklenburg School System has developed a couple of programs to help educate their students on precautions they can take to stay safe when traveling on a bus. They have partnered with Gus the Bus for over 30 years and most recently they’ve added the miniature robotic model, Buster the Bus. These replicas travel to schools, educating children as early as kindergarten on what precautions should be taken to avoid injuries and accidents. We encourage all parents to take an active role in your child’s safety. Make sure to familiarize yourselves with the rules and review these with your children on a regular basis and make school bus safety a priority.

Unfortunately, educating the children is only half of the battle. It’s important to make sure that in this fast paced society, we all learn to put safety first.   You may be surprised to know that last year alone over 3,200 vehicles were witnessed to have illegally passed a stopped school bus, in just one day.  If that truly is an average day, then presumably close to 600,000 vehicles pass stopped busses in a year.  North Carolina has taken this threat seriously not only increasing penalties associated with these violations but they’re also piloting a program testing stop-arm video cameras.  If you aren’t aware of the laws regarding a stopped bus, you can find a comprehensive diagram at the North Carolina Bus Safety Website.

If your child has been injured on, near or around a school bus due to the negligence of another person, call us today, we’re here to help. We have helped many children and their families in these unfortunate circumstances and have the experience necessary to fight against the insurance companies involved. Call us today at 704-333-0885 or stop into one of our convenient office locations in Charlotte, Gastonia, Hickory or Rock Hill, SC.

Written by Karen Alicea, Personal Injury Supervisor, Campbell & Associates, Attorneys at Law