By Lacie Morrison
lmorrison@mineralwellsindex.com
In the interest of student safety, local Texas Department of Public Safety troopers will randomly follow school buses on rural routes in the county, announced DPS Sgt. Jason Dudley.
“We plan on starting when school resumes,” he said. “It won’t be every day.”
Dudley said the new initiative was something “we did when I was stationed in Wichita Falls. I want to implement it here.”
Dudley said he has received calls from concerned parents on Oaks Crossing and the Farm-to-Market Road 1195 area about reckless drivers around the buses. In Wichita Falls, he recalled, “the parents were really supportive” of the initiative.
He explained the troopers – on a voluntary basis – will follow school buses primarily on rural routes to specifically enforce the law pertaining to passing a school bus. “The biggest problem is people don’t understand the law,” he said.
According to the statute, drivers are required to stop before reaching the school bus when the bus is operating a visual signal and not proceed until the bus resumes motion, the bus driver signals the driver to proceed or the visual signal is no longer actuated.
“If you read the law, the only exception is a divided roadway,” Dudley said.
The statute’s exception reads, “an operator on a highway having separate roadways is not required to stop for a school bus that is on a different roadway or if on a controlled-access highway, for a school bus that has stopped.”
The sergeant explained Interstate 20 would be considered a divided roadway because of the concrete barrier. Similarly, a divided roadway would be a road where there was a space between the two directions of traffic where vehicles don’t operate like a grassy area, he said.
The statute further explains a highway is considered a separate roadway if separated by “an intervening space on which operation of vehicles is not permitted, a physical barrier or a clearly dividing section constructed to impede vehicular traffic.” A turning lane does not constitute an intervening space, according to the law.
“Based on National Highway Traffic Safety Administration stats, an average of 20 school-age children die in school transportation-related crashes each year,” Dudley said. “I would like to encourage the public to report violations when they see them. This helps me identify problem areas that need attention.”
According to the statute, failure to observe the law is a misdemeanor offense punishable by a fine ranging from $200 to $1,000. It becomes a Class A misdemeanor if the person causes serious bodily injury and upgraded to a state jail felony if that individual was previously convicted of causing a seriously bodily injury.
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