December 12, 1997FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE (Trost)
RE: NEW LAW INCREASES BUS USE OF FLASHING RED LIGHTS: TRAFFIC DELAYS PREDICTED
³Stop when red lights flash² takes on a whole new meaning for California drivers Jan. 1 that may impact rush hour traffic.
New state law effective Jan. 1 requires school buses to turn on their flashing red lights ‹ requiring other drivers to stop ‹ whenever students are boarding or leaving the bus.
Existing law requires other drivers to stop when bus drivers use their flashing red lights only when children are crossing the street.
The change in the law requires drivers going in both directions to stop when a school bus is flashing its red lights and is on a road with no center median. Drivers going in the opposite direction on a road with a median will not be required to stop.
Fines between $150 and $250 can be levied against drivers for the first offense. Second offense fines can be as high as $1,000, with license suspension after three violations.
Traffic on some of San Diego¹s busiest streets will be impacted during morning rush hour and again in the afternoon when schools are dismissed. All buses unloading students adjacent to schools will have their red lights flashing, requiring all other drivers to stop.
³Congestion near many of our schools is inevitable,² Alexandra Robinson, director of transportation for the district, said. ³Drivers are not accustomed to seeing red lights flashing on buses unless students are being escorted across the street.²
Commuters driving on some of San Diego¹s busiest streets may need to plan an alternate route or add extra time for their commutes, she advised. Transportation Department staff members have identified the areas adjacent to Mission Bay High School on Grand Avenue, San Diego High on Park Boulevard, Muirlands Middle School and La Jolla High on Nautilus Street and Point Loma High on Chatsworth Boulevard as potential traffic bottlenecks in the mornings and afternoons because of the large numbers of buses dropping off and picking up students at these locations.
³Motorists will also have to be more alert in residential areas, where most students board the bus,² Robinson said. ³Starting in January, buses loading and unloading students in residential areas will be using their flashing red lights and all traffic will be required to stop as long as the lights flash.²
Some of the worst congestion may come in the afternoons, when students are picked up at their schools. There could be lengthy traffic delays, Robinson said, due to the time it takes to load all students onto their appropriate buses.
San Diego City Schools operates 546 buses, which on any given school day make 14,800 stops to load and unload students.
The new law requiring school buses to use their flashing lights whenever loading or unloading students was passed by the legislature following the death of several students, none in San Diego City Schools. Most other states have similar laws, Robinson said.
