The National Association of State Directors of Pupil Transportation Services (NASDPTS) is kicking off the 5th Annual National Stop Arm Violation Count, and they are calling on states to participate in a nationwide tally of the number of motorists who illegally pass school buses with the stop arm extended on a daily basis.
States which agree to participate will choose a single day for school bus drivers from both public and private school districts to observe and report all instances of illegal passing as well as count the total number of drivers committing stop arm violations. These two measurements will allow for the data to distinguish when multiple vehicles pass the bus at one time.
The survey is being coordinated by NASDPTS Executive Director Charlie Hood and North Carolina State Director Derek Graham, who have asked members to conduct the survey before May 15 so that data can be assembled in June.
In last year’s survey, 97,000 drivers from 29 states, or roughly a fifth of the nation’s school bus drivers, volunteered to manually record the number of illegal passing incidents. In the span of a single day, those drivers recorded an all-time low of 75,966 vehicles violating state school bus laws.
“Recently, we have seen several state initiatives to improve motorist education about school bus stopping laws and to increase law enforcement,” said Hood and Graham. “If this year’s data remains consistent it will support a continuing need for greater safety countermeasures at the state or national level.”
Since the survey began in 2011, the results average out at 81,489 illegal passing incidents a year. Last year marked the lowest numbers, while 2012 marked the highest recorded number of violations with 88,025.
