Overtaking school bus when stop sign is ON (Vienna: rental car, rental)

[jayanth_br]

Hi All,
Unfortunately I happened to overtake a school bus in northern VA 2 days back when the stop sign was ON and the bus was unloading children. I was new to this place and was looking for someting while driving and missed to notice the STOP sign on school bus. As soon as I overtook the bus, the driver honked at me, and when I stopped at the next traffic signal, the bus was right behind me and I could see the driver noting down my car number.

- I have an out of state license (Texas)
- I am on H1 visa, my visa transfer is in progress for a new employer
- I am very new to VA
- I was using a rental car
- I have had clean driving history for last 2 years

Request the people on this forum to guide me on how severe an offense this is.
What implications this could have if I get a ticket.
I did some googling and found that in VA this accounts to reckless driving. How should I handle this if I get a ticket.

I am really scared and any suggestions would help me a lot.

Jay

[Rhett_Butler]

It is pretty serious as far as moving violations are concerned but I don't think your livelihood will be in any jeapordy over it.....

[jayanth_br]

As mentioned above, I have an out of state license. I am basically from Texas. Does anyone know if incase I get a traffic ticket, I need to come to VA to appear in the court? Has anyone come across such case (School bus overtake). What was the court verdict?

Please throw some light on this.......

[dullnboring]

I'm not 100% certain on anything. One thing I'm confused about though, do you or do you not live in Virginia? You first stated you were new to the state, but then seem to be implying that you live in Texas and a trip back for a potential court date would be burdensome. Where are you currently living, and if not in Virginia, are you planning on moving here? That could affect the way this is judged.

Either way, read this:

Reckless Driving in Virginia Penalty Vienna Henrico 20 Speed Limit Accident Define Attorney Violation Racing Lawyer

[claremarie]

It is unlikely that you can receive a ticket based solely on the bus driver's report. At most, you (or the rental company) would receive a warning letter.

[jayanth_br]

Thanks guys...
To answer dullnboring's question, I have relocated to VA. But I still have TX driving license. There is a small possibility that I may have to again relocate to CA. I just wanted to make sure, in case I relocate do I have to come back to VA to appear in the court...

[RicoRican]

As in any other state or in your case a Commonwealth means exactly that! You are common and probably do not have wealth...thats why you left Tx. Joking. However, you need to sign up for a defensive(literally) safe driving class by an accreditated school and then fork over a lot of cash for the court and attorney fees. That's the long & short of it all. Lo siento, que lastima.

[Nancy in Nokomis]

If I were you I would thank my lucky stars you did not kill or maim a kid - you would have to live with that the rest of your life.
I dont care what your excuse is - you should hang your head in shame and hope you pay dearly for what you did.

[car54]

I'm sure the OP of this year old thread is long gone but I'll add my $.02.

I drive a bus for FCPS and there is a procedure for us to report bus passers. But it's long and complicated, sort of like a citizens' arrest. You need much more than a tag number, you have to be able to identify the driver in court. Due to the complexity of it, coupled with the sheer numbers of maniacs out there (literally dozens of people run my lights EVERY day!), most bus drivers just concentrate on protecting their students from these nuts.

The real danger of bus passers is when we are "crossing" students....where the kids cross the street in front of the bus. Our routing tries to minimize having to cross students....we drive many miles out of the way to drop the kids on the same side as they live on, but in some situations we have to cross them.

We do have a secret weapon for really egregious or chronic bus passers....we can request a FCPD motor officer to shadow the bus. He'll ride his motorcycle right on the front (or rear) bumper of the bus, and when they fly by........GOTCHA! I love it and have availed myself of this service several times in my short career (just been driving bus a few years since I retired).


Incidently, did you all know that emergency vehicles with lights and siren on are required by law to stop for a school bus that is loading/unloading? Of course, we immediately stop the loading/unloading, turn off our lights and let them go.

[bangorme]

I've got a question. On a highway with a dividing strip of some sort, do you have to stop on the other side of the strip? I'm thinking of roads like Van Dorn.

And the word mainiac offends me, being from Maine!!!!!!!! We are sensative in Maine lol.


Thanks