School Bus Safety: A Quick Refresher On Georgia’s Bus Safety Laws

It’s that time of year again. The time most parents dream of and most kids dread. Time to go back to school. With the beginning of the new school year upon us, a quick refresher regarding bus safety laws is important to keeping our children safe and prevent unnecessary collisions and traffic violations.

Recently, Governor Brian Kemp signed into law a fix to a loophole in Georgia bus legislation. Prior to the loophole being closed, Georgia law was unclear regarding when a car could pass a school bus. Attorney General Christopher Carr was asked to look at the old statute by the state legislature. He determined under the old law, a vehicle traveling the opposite way could pass a bus with an extended arm on a highway divided by a turning lane. Now that loophole is closed. With the loophole closed, vehicles can now only pass a school bus with an extended arm when they are traveling on the opposite side of the roadway with a median in between the vehicle and the bus.

It is important to remember that getting home a minute or two quicker is not worth getting a traffic ticket or potentially endangering the life of a child. For those of you who follow the law and do stop for buses; should someone rear-end you in their rush to get home; please give us a call at Johnson & Alday. We would be happy to help you navigate this scary time and get you back on the right track.