A couple of questions regarding school bus stops:
I drive up several streets and see signs saying “School bus stop ahead,” but never see a sign saying “Bus stop.” Why?
And: On Fourth Plain between 87th and Andresen are islands with trees in the middle. If the bus is stopped on one side and you are going on the other side, do you still have to stop for the bus?
— Frances Miller, somewhere on the streets
Let’s take the second, more practical, question first. The preceding existential question can wait a moment.
Thoroughly drummed into the noggin of every responsible driver should be the maxim that when a school bus stops, you stop. But it turns out that laws in many states — including Washington — aren’t quite that simple.
“It’s a little confusing and it’s different in Oregon than here,” said Todd Horenstein, facilities director at Vancouver Public Schools.
The Washington law governing this matter is RCW 46.61.370. Here’s a summary of its first three sections, which are aimed at drivers sharing the road with school buses.
First, drivers going in either direction must stop before reaching a school bus that’s stopped and displaying signs or signals indicating that it is collecting or discharging children. Second, if the roadway is physically divided by a median island or barrier at least 18 inches wide, drivers on the opposite side from a stopped school bus need not stop.
That’s your answer, Frances: If those median islands are big enough to grow trees, you keep going.
But wait, there’s more. The third section says a driver on a road with three or more marked lanes need not stop for a stopped bus headed the opposite way. And according to the Washington state school bus driver’s manual (http://www.k12.wa.us/transportation/pubdocs/SchoolBusDriverHandbook.pdf), if there are three marked traffic lanes (including turn lanes), school districts must locate nearby bus stops within 300 feet of a traffic signal — so students have a way to cross safely.
“We don’t cross kids where there are three or more lanes,” Horenstein said.
As far as signs that tell you the school bus stop is ahead but never mark the spot itself — the point is to alert drivers to be on the lookout for buses ahead as well as children who may be walking in the vicinity, Horenstein said. The stops themselves don’t get posted because they often move around from year to year, he said, depending on convenience and neighbors’ feedback.
Horenstein was puzzled at the question and said he believes there must be very few of these “stop ahead” signs in Vancouver. If some totally obsolete sign indicates an upcoming stop that doesn’t exist anymore, Horenstein said, the school district can ask the city to take it down.
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