Police Remind Drivers to Respect the Bus (VIDEO)
The first day of school is Aug. 31st in Montgomery County and police are reminding drivers to “Respect the Bus.”
According to police, Maryland law requires vehicles to stop when traveling in the same direction of a stopped school bus with activated flashing red lights. Drivers on the opposite direction also must stop when approaching a stopped school bus; unless, a physical barrier such as a median exists.
In this MyMCMedia Extra, Montgomery County Police Chief Thomas Manger talks about the difference when a driver gets a citation from the camera generated from the bus or if a police officer cites for the driver for the same offense.
In Montgomery County, 25 school buses have cameras to record vehicles that pass a stopped bus. Police said they expect to “eventually” have cameras on up to 100 buses.
“We’ve had over 1,955 violations in the first 18 months of the school bus camera program, and that’s way too many,” said MCP Traffic Division Director Captain Tom Didone.
According to a news release, fine is $125 if citation comes from these cameras and no points are associated through this program.
“That includes when driving on a two-lane roadway, a two-lane roadway with a center turning lane and a four-lane roadway without a median separation. The only exception is for a divided highway of four lanes or more with a median separation,” still according to the news release.
However, if a police officer issues the same offense the fine is $570 plus three points in the driver’s license.
“Respect the Bus” is a public service announcement produced by the county’s police department, county government, and MCPS-TV.
Engage us on Facebook
Follow us on Twitter
Tweets by @mymcmedia