Every school day busses transport students to and from school and the process of loading and unloading children calls for procedures that ensure their safety. For this purpose, school busses have safety equipment, such as flashing yellow and red lights, along with an extendable arm with a stop sign. These safety features, combined with related traffic laws, help protect children while entering and exiting school busses.

There seems to be a lot of confusion about when it’s OK and when it’s not OK to pass a school bus that is stopped on the side of the road.

The law states that anyone operating a motor vehicle on any Florida road or highway, upon approaching a school bus displaying a stop signal, must come to a full stop, and remain stopped until the school bus has withdrawn its signal.

However, there are exceptions which may contribute to the uncertainty surrounding this particular law. Specifically, you are allowed to pass a stopped school bus, displaying a stop signal, if you are traveling in the opposite direction of the school bus, in an area where the road or highway is divided by:

• A space of at least 5 feet of unpaved surface between the opposing lanes of traffic; or
• A raised median, such as a curbed area or island, between opposing lanes of traffic; or
• A physical boundary, such as a fence or cement safety barrier, between opposing lanes of traffic.

What is the fine for passing a stopped school bus:

• A moving violation citation accompanied by 4 points on your driving record
• A mandatory hearing
• Completion of an approved basic Driver Improvement Course
• A fine of $265 for passing on the same side of the street as the bus, and up to 1 year in jail
• A fine of $165 for passing on the opposing traffic side of the street from the bus, and up to 6 months in jail

Penalties involving serious injury or death may include:

• A mandatory hearing
• 1 year minimum driver license suspension
• A $1500 fine
• 6 points added to your driving record
• 120 hours of community service
• Participation in a victim impact panel, or completion of an approved Driver Improvement Course

HOW CAN AN ATTORNEY HELP YOU IF YOU’VE BEEN CITED FOR PASSING A STOPPED SCHOOL BUS? For example, an experienced attorney can attend the mandatory hearing and request that the charge be reduced to a non-moving violation, or request that the court withhold adjudication (agree not to hand down an official judgement in the case) so as to avoid points on your record, or in some cases, ask for dismissal of all charges due to insufficient evidence.

Also read Speeding in a School Zone or a Construction Zone – What You Should Know.

If you’re concerned about a ticket for illegally passing a school bus, call the Ticket Clinic today for a free consultation at 1-800-CITATION (1800-248-2846) or hire us online . Our experienced lawyers have resolved over 3,000,000 traffic related cases since 1987.