With most students heading back to school next week, we’ll once again be sharing the roads with school buses helping to get them there. Remember to observe the following laws when school buses are stopped with lights flashing- besides the obvious safety risks, in Oregon you can get a ticket even if a police officer doesn’t observe the violation and in Washington, you can expect your fine to be double the normal amount.
- Prepare to stop when you see a school bus with flashing amber lights
- When red lights are flashing, traffic in all directions is required to stop before reaching the bus
- Remain stopped until the lights are no longer flashing
- This law applies to traffic going all directions on any roadway with 2 or more lanes of traffic
- In Oregon the only exception is if you are on a divided highway with 2 roads separated by a median or barrier. (a painted dividing line or road with a center turn lane does not count)
- In Washington, it is permitted to pass a stopped bus as long as the road is at least 3 lanes and you are going the opposite direction
Remember, if you get one of these tickets, don’t discuss it with your citing officer and call Dore Law Firm to see if we can keep this ticket off your driving record.