Northwest Iowa (Radio Iowa ) — School is back in session around the area, and we’re again seeing those big yellow buses on the road, often with their lights flashing and their stop arms extended.
Last year there were 581 convictions in Iowa for passing a stopped school bus. Iowa Department of Transportation director Mark Lowe says the best way to avoid a ticket — or a crash — is to obey the speed limit and keep your eyes on the road.
According to the Iowa DOT, there have been “at least two incidents in the past two years” in which drivers have been killed when their vehicle smashed into the back of an Iowa school bus.
Lieutenant Governor Adam Gregg says the 10-foot perimeter around a school bus is sometimes called the “danger zone.”
Drivers are to prepare to stop when the yellow lights on a school bus are flashing, unless the bus is on a road that’s four-lanes wide. In that instance, vehicles on a four-lane road that are BEHIND the bus must stop.
Five years ago, the penalties for passing a stopped school bus were raised and first-time offenders lose their driver’s license for 30 days. “Kadyn’s Law” was named after seven-year-old Kadyn Halvorson of Northwood. She was struck and killed by a pick-up while she was crossing the road to board her school bus.
