School buses return to roads as officials urge drivers to slow down, stop
As students return to school, officials urge caution around school zones and school buses. Above is a graphic on when you need to stop for a school bus in Washington. Those who do not follow the law could face up to a $500 fine that is unable to be waived.
COURTESY PHOTO/OFFICE OF THE SUPERINTENDENT OF PUBLIC INSTRUCTION
EPHRATA — As students head back to classrooms across Washington, state education and law enforcement officials are reminding motorists that school bus safety remains a serious concern, with hundreds of illegal passings documented in a single day during a nationwide survey.
The Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction said Thursday that Washington school bus drivers recorded 960 illegal passes of stopped school buses during a one-day survey in 2026, highlighting ongoing dangers for students traveling to and from school.
The survey, conducted annually by the National Association of State Directors of Pupil Transportation Services, included responses from 3,419 Washington bus drivers and more than 101,000 drivers nationwide. If the number of illegal passings recorded in Washington during the survey were repeated throughout a typical 180-day school year, it would total more than 172,000 violations, according to OSPI.
School transportation officials say the violations pose a significant risk to students entering or exiting buses.
"There's near misses every day across this country," Grant County Sheriff's Office Public Information Officer Kyle Foreman said in an interview. "There's auto-versus-pedestrian collisions every day in this country because someone chooses to drive around or ignore the red lights on a school bus."
State data show an average of nearly 341,000 Washington K-12 students rode school buses each day during the 2025-26 school year, accounting for nearly 100 million miles traveled.
Foreman said back-to-school safety begins with both children and drivers paying attention.
Parents should remind children to look both ways before crossing streets, walk rather than run across roadways and report unfamiliar people or unsafe situations to a trusted adult, he said.
Motorists, meanwhile, should slow down in school zones, obey posted speed limits and watch carefully for children walking, biking or crossing streets.
"We don't want anyone getting hurt," Foreman said.
Washington law requires drivers traveling on a two-lane road to stop when a school bus activates its flashing red lights and extends its stop sign. Drivers traveling in the same direction as the bus must also stop on roads with three or more lanes.
The exception applies to motorists traveling in the opposite direction on roads divided by a physical barrier or median, where they are not required to stop.
Officials stress that drivers should never pass a stopped school bus displaying its stop paddle and flashing red lights.
"If you're behind the school bus and the stop sign is out, do not pass the school bus," Foreman said. "You run the risk of striking a child who is crossing in front of the school bus."
Many school buses are equipped with cameras that can capture vehicles illegally passing stopped buses, allowing authorities to identify violators.
Drivers who illegally pass a stopped school bus face a substantial penalty. According to OSPI, the offense carries a mandatory $500 fine that cannot be waived, reduced or suspended.
The Washington Department of Licensing also advises motorists to continue watching for children near roadways even after a bus retracts its stop sign and turns off its flashing red lights.
As schools reopen and buses return to regular routes, officials are urging patience behind the wheel.
"When in doubt, stop," OSPI said in its back-to-school safety message.
Some schools in Grant County have already started with others opening this week.