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Stop for School Bus?

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Old 05-30-13, 03:48 PM
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Stop for School Bus?

Anybody not stop and wait when you're behind a school bus that's stopped to load/offload kiddies? I do but man, I wish they could get on and sit down faster. How long can it take to walk into the bus, find a seat and park it?
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Old 05-30-13, 03:53 PM
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I do...wouldn't want to ride past one on the right just as a little kid hops down and perhaps smack into me...it's annoying but better annoyed than hitting a kid.
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Old 05-30-13, 04:26 PM
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Leave your house a few minutes earlier and you probably won't have to contend with the buses.
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Old 05-30-13, 04:57 PM
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Originally Posted by no1mad
Leave your house a few minutes earlier and you probably won't have to contend with the buses.
I don't know what it's like where you are, but I could leave home anytime between 6:15 and 8:30 and have a good chance of getting stuck behind a school bus at some point.

I will stop for them though. Had a school bus blow past me and stop at the next driveway this morning. The draft of the thing just about sucked me into his rear bumper. I just wish they'd show me the same courtesy that we're required to show them.
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Old 05-30-13, 05:01 PM
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would you want to hit a kid on your bike? they could seriously be killed. if you really cannot wait, get off the bike walk it up onto the sidewalk and walk around the bus and kids. once you are clear, get back to the street and get going.
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Old 05-30-13, 05:39 PM
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I think that is a vehicle rule that everyone should obey - cars, bikes, mopeds, whatever. Kind of like pulling over for an ambulance.
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Old 05-30-13, 05:58 PM
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School buses here aren't permitted to use their flashing lights when dropping off kids, so its not a problem here.
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Old 05-30-13, 06:10 PM
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Go ped. Dismount, hop on the sidewalk, walk past the bus, hop off the curb, ride on.
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Old 05-30-13, 06:15 PM
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^^^< that's My Approach >^^^

Or I see the bus stopped ahead, I slow down, hang back and at the slower rate
by the time I get there, its pulling away again.

Last edited by fietsbob; 05-30-13 at 10:17 PM.
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Old 05-30-13, 07:31 PM
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Yup. I stop. It's just good manners. And that's especially important in this case.

It never occurred to me to mind. Hope it's not rude of me to comment on this subject, but maybe you're taking your ride a bit too seriously.
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Old 05-30-13, 08:37 PM
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I stop for the buses; sometimes, the driver will pull the flashing sign back in sooner when he/she sees me trackstanding, LOL!

Potentially hitting the kids is the reason for the law, so I have ZERO problem with that law. But I do feel ya on the issue of rude bus drivers -- the ONE BUS that buzzed me was a school bus! CITY buses give me 6 feet when they pass me.

Being on the bike can really personalize these encounters; until I crossed paths with the buses while riding, I was NEVER seen as another human being. Drivers are just seen as 'cars', but on a bike, you're not behind glass.
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Old 05-30-13, 08:44 PM
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Absolutely stop...you don't want to hurt anybody AND it sets the right example for the kids who are watching what you do
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Old 05-30-13, 09:12 PM
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i stop.

ours have the swing out stop signs to let you know when they are serious.

many times they will let me go by before they put the sign out and disembark the kiddies.
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Old 05-30-13, 09:36 PM
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I always stop for school buses.
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Old 05-30-13, 10:58 PM
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I almost always stop (and stay stopped) for school buses - I can only think of one exception, which was a bus which stopped on the other side of the road for 5+ minutes, inexplicably, at the same spot every day. Whenever I came upon it I'd come to a complete stop and proceed.
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Old 05-30-13, 11:20 PM
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I have all too frequent conversations with the bus drivers' supervisor regarding their lawbreaking. I would lose my moral high ground if the bus video showed me riding past while the red lights are flashing. Okay, I would stop even if I wasn't in the habit of whining to their boss, but it does remove all temptation. I always get a smile and wave from the drivers when I stop for oncoming buses, as required. I even pull over well back of the bus to let any faster moving traffic go by me; I prefer slow-speed passes.
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Old 05-31-13, 06:16 AM
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Always stop for school buses. Always. It's the law, and you could kill or seriously injure a child if you hit one. Trust me, the law authorities will throw the book at you if you do that, and it would be deserved. I run my share of stop signs and red lights (after stopping, of course), but I never pass school buses with their flashers on and flags out.
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Old 05-31-13, 06:45 AM
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Originally Posted by gecho
School buses here aren't permitted to use their flashing lights when dropping off kids, so its not a problem here.
Seriously? That's really dangerous for kids who need to cross the street after getting off the bus.
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Old 05-31-13, 06:52 AM
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Yes, I do stop for every bus, stop sign and red light.
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Old 05-31-13, 07:05 AM
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Originally Posted by CACycling
Go ped. Dismount, hop on the sidewalk, walk past the bus, hop off the curb, ride on.
This.


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Old 05-31-13, 07:33 AM
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Originally Posted by spivonious
Seriously? That's really dangerous for kids who need to cross the street after getting off the bus.
The city has determined that having kids step out from behind a large obstruction IS dangerous and that they should be dropped off in front of their home and not be required to cross a street. Flashing lights creates a false sense of security and puts the onus on the driver to ensure traffic is stopped in both directions.
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Old 05-31-13, 07:39 AM
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Yes, I do. I'm a road user, so I have to abide by the traffic laws. That includes stopping for stopped school buses with their flashers on, and stop sign extended.
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Old 05-31-13, 08:14 AM
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Kind of a weird question to even ask IMO - stop, every time. I am the last person in the world to judge other people's at risk behaviors around geese, squirrels or even wild turkeys, but when it comes to crossing paths with kids playing it safe is pretty much a no-brainer.
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Old 05-31-13, 09:31 AM
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Do you have kids? Do they ride the school bus? if you did you'd understand that the only acceptable response to this questions is: ALWAYS. In fact you would never even ask the question.
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Old 05-31-13, 10:12 AM
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I stop when the red lights flash.....like it says in big letters on the bus.
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