Last time I argued about school bus safety and kids running across roads without looking, I got ripped apart by Americans. In Australia we teach kids to hop off buses safely and look both ways before crossing a road after the bus has pulled away.
"Stop when red lights are flashing" on our school buses. Sure, like...the kid has right-of-way, but that doesn't mean you can just turn your brain off and cross.
Not that I don't see on average at least 1 person a day cross a street diagonally, slowly, looking at their phone or eyes straight-forward, letting Jesus take the wheel.
Anytime I cross a street, my head is on a damn swivel.
Yeah like by the same damn logic you wouldn't teach the kids to look both ways when crossing the street when you have a green light either. You do it always when you cross regardless of the situation because some people break the rules. There are plenty of dead people who had the right of way.
Same here. My classmate lost her sister just like this. Yes, people and drivers should be observant, but reality isn't a theory test.
I saw my classmate's face going from a happy young girl to this mask of absolute emptiness. There was nothing I could do being a very, very dumb boy other than staying away while her friends tried to support her.
I think about her every time I see a school bus stop. I follow the rules around busses like if I hat two police officers in the back watching me, but really it's just the memory of the sister sitting there.
Yeah I too remember a kid at my school got hit by a car and died back in the 90s. It was near the local soccer field and I still remember the pedestrian crossing that was put in the spot of the accident everytime I used to drive past.
I’m a school bus driver in California, USA and every driver I know absolutely emphasizes safety above all else. My state would require I exit and cross a student this young with my handheld stop sign, but not all states make this requirement. This driver seems to be blocking most of the road though.
All that said, it’s moments like these that make my day as a driver. Kids are gonna be kids and I do my absolute best to be sure they get home safe.
YES! I'm tired of everyone bashing the US in some of these comments. We have all been taught school street/bus safety since we were in preschool and it was hammered into us all the time the moment we started kindergarten! We also had it drilled into us in driver's ed to never pass a bus with flashing lights so anyone who does that must be an asshole or drunk. I just hate when people talk bad about Americans bc I think we do a really good job of educating street safety to kids! It's always that one idiot who makes us all look bad....
Why tf do America still use buses where you get out in the front? In my country (eu) we stopped getting off at the front of the bus 20 years ago, now all buses come with two doors and you step out in the middle/back and then there is no risk of running in front of the bus.
I'm not sure how that makes any difference. If the kid needs to cross the street it doesn't make any difference where they exit they still need to get around the bus
The difference is that kids wait for the buss to leave before crossing the street instead of taking the shortest path and speeding in front or behind of the bus like in the clip. It's just human psychology. In the eu we don't need forced stops behind busses cause of this, every bus has two doors. The danger is that car drivers don't see the kids.
So, in my scenario I can watch the child safely cross the street, give them directions, or even get out of my bus to help them cross the street. In your scenario, the driver is gone and on their merry way leaving the kid to fend for themselves. That wouldn’t fly here… below a certain age we have a legal responsibility to see the kids to their guardian.
I would rather the kid cross in front of the bus— after all it’s where people are expecting it to happen. There’s a required feature on our busses called a “crossing arm”, it projects out from the front of the bus at a stop and prevents kids from crossing in the first 6 feet in front of the bus. This provides visibility for me and other drivers. I can also simply block the road sometimes. But ultimately I do my best to put my door on the correct side of the road so no crossing is needed.
Our school buses are designed by legislation with safety in mind. That’s why they all look the same and are very different from our public transit buses which are designed around efficiency. Per mile, school buses are the safest form of transportation we have on the road, so I think we’re doing something right.
With that aspect I suppose it makes more sense, over here ain't no1 caring if you get home it's common for kids to bike by themselfs to the school bus pickup point
Bro, the point is that the drivers see the bus. It's the law to stop in all directions for a school bus in all 50 states. It works fine for us. The bus dropping off the kid and then driving away to let them fend for crossing the street themselves seems insane. The school bus is basically saying this whole-ass street is closed until my red lights go off.
I still fail to see how having doors on the side of the bus would make this any safer. He'd either be left on the opposite side of the road from his house (and have to cross on his own after the bus left, according to you?) or he'd be getting off literally into the opposing lane of traffic... and everyone would have to stop, just like they already do everywhere in the US.
Like, c'mon. So many other criticisms you can lay on Americans. We can take it. Our school busses are fine. It's literally the safest form of transportation in the US that any child takes.
What I am reacting too is that Americans here seem to be upset about that I pointed out that the kid did not look at either directions before crossing the road. Because of "You are supposed to stop your car when the school buss is stationary and flashing with lights". 1) There are people who brake the rules 2) Where I live you do not have to stop your car, but slow down and be cautious. 3) It is good to teach your kid some form of self preservation.
We, the rest of the western world, do of course also have some rather strong opinions about the US at the moment with your Cheetos in command. Though that hurts the MAGA folks feelings and they then cry for mods to step in. So I rather not do that here at least!
We teach kids to look both ways when they cross the street too, I don't know why you think that's different here (ironic, given your comment of Americans being close-minded and not open to how things operate elsewhere). The added measure of school buses having deployable stop signs and crossing arms, plus the steepest penalties possible for passing a stopped school bus shows, if anything, we take this safety issue VERY seriously.
We enforce the things we are able to enforce. I'm not sure what you think anyone could have done differently in this video to make a 6 year old kid look both ways before crossing in front of the bus. Unless you wanted the bus driver to literally walk out there with him, I'm not sure how you could do that.
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u/finfisk2000 1d ago edited 1d ago
The kid never looked for traffic on either side and just ran infront of the buss. A passing car would never had any chance to react.
Edit: In my profession I do risk assesments and investigate accidents.