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I stopped for a schoolbus with his red flashers on today, and later realized it was an empty but (except for driver) making a left turn into the schoolyard at the end of the day.
No children were anywhere around, not on the bus, not waiting for the bus, nada.
Are bus drivers allowed to use their flashers to give themselves right of way to make turns like that? Aren't the flashers just for when kids are getting on or off the bus?
I wonder if it was a bus doing a practice run? I've seen them doing that the week before school starts as they get an idea of their route. Maybe a new bus driver, trying out his flashers? If I was a new bus driver, I would want to make sure they worked. Little weird not to just do it IN the school yard though, instead of on the street.
When I lived in Colorado, yes the drivers would use their flashers even when they weren't supposed to as if they were granted special right of way. Often the things they were doing was unsafe such as leaving the flashers on and the stop sign out while they were driving down the road. On coming cars would stop and the bus would just keep on going. These and other antics weren't just an occasional slip up but daily practice.
Worst incident I ever saw was a driver trying to make a left turn across traffic onto a connector that came in on a very tight angle. Meaning he needed the whole road and then some. But rather than wait for traffic to clear, he used his "flasher privilege" to cut across but was unable to make the turn so he was blocking both directions of traffic plus now the cross street couldn't move either. Total jam up. The bus driver sat in his bus screaming and cursing at all the other drivers to get out of his way because he was a school bus and had right of way. In the end several of us had to get out of our cars to stop traffic and guide a couple dozen cars at the intersection to slowly back up, and guide him through several back and forward movements to wiggle his way around. All the while being cursed at by him.
Some of these were so bad I filed several complaints with the district over the bad driving, but all I ever got was standard spiel about stopping for the bus and safety of the children. They would never acknowledge the driver was the hazard.
So next time, I'll call the bus company and complain. Maybe I'll take a picture and make a fuss. That really ticks me off.
Some of the bus drivers here (including the one today, I recognized him) are very inconsiderate; roads are narrow with no center stripe, so they drive down the center and don't let others pass even when it's safe.
...And some drivers are very considerate, it's a mix.
This is always a tough time of year for everyone as the city transitions back into the school year. Our district has recently changed start times, which has pushed middle school & high school traffic into rush hour. We live about as far as possible from the high school, and the buses that serve our neighborhood have been arriving 30 minutes late since school started on Monday. The delays may be worse than usual due to road construction, but this is pretty common at the beginning of the year, and eventually it will straighten out. In the meantime, the bus drivers are very stressed, so it would not surprise me to learn that some of them are bending the rules a little with the signal lights. As an aside, I wish that our parents would stop trying to fix the problems themselves by driving their kids to school. It just exacerbates the issue by creating more traffic in already congested areas for the buses to navigate each morning.
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"I don't understand. But I don't care, so it works out."
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My guess is, this is force of habit. I would also guess that he is required to do that, and not go through the thought process of "are kids on the bus"? "Are there no kids on the bus so I don't need flashers?"
Just like you use a turn indicator even if there isn't another car in sight. You just do it, because that's the rules of the road and habit.
It's a little surprising this has gotten you upset enough to call and take a picture and make a fuss about it. I doubt your complaint will be taken seriously - or even, maybe the bus company will call the driver and say good job using your flashers as required.
My guess is, this is force of habit. I would also guess that he is required to do that, and not go through the thought process of "are kids on the bus"? "Are there no kids on the bus so I don't need flashers?"
Just like you use a turn indicator even if there isn't another car in sight. You just do it, because that's the rules of the road and habit.
It's a little surprising this has gotten you upset enough to call and take a picture and make a fuss about it. I doubt your complaint will be taken seriously - or even, maybe the bus company will call the driver and say good job using your flashers as required.
Yeah. Bus drivers put up with a lot, they are the salt of the earth! I give them a wide berth to take as much time and space as they need. I've known of too many kids killed by impatient drivers going around buses ... I don't ever want to be one of them. Life is full of inconveniences, this one is minor. Anger or joy? That's all up to me.
So next time, I'll call the bus company and complain. Maybe I'll take a picture and make a fuss. That really ticks me off.
Some of the bus drivers here (including the one today, I recognized him) are very inconsiderate; roads are narrow with no center stripe, so they drive down the center and don't let others pass even when it's safe.
...And some drivers are very considerate, it's a mix.
If this is your biggest inconvenience in life....I think I would be counting my blessings and not calling a bus company to complain about a bus using it's flashers.
Yeah, but...somebody else passed the bus; the bus driver angrily honked and yelled at him. (That's what drew my attention to the situation.) Like he had a RIGHT to cut off all other traffic for his own convenience.
If the bus driver is only supposed to use his flashers for kids safety, but uses them for his own convenience, then yells at other drivers, there's something wrong that should be addressed.
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