LANSDALE BOROUGH- It’s been a little while, but Traffic Talk is back!  And with the new school year right around the corner, we figured there was no better time to talk about school bus safety and driver requirements when approaching a school bus with activated lights.

When a school bus is stopped with its red lights flashing and stop arm extended, drivers approaching from either direction must stop at least 10 feet away and remain stopped until the red lights stop flashing, the stop arm is withdrawn, and the children have reached a safe location.

North Penn School District buses are equipped with BusPatrol camera systems that record vehicles that illegally pass stopped school buses.  The recorded incidents are reviewed by the police department having jurisdiction where the violation occurred, and an approved violation carries a $300 civil penalty.

Think passing a stopped school bus isn't a common problem?  Think again.

From May 31, 2025, through June 1, 2026, police departments serving the North Penn School District reviewed 7,530 potential violations captured through the BusPatrol school bus safety program.  Of those, 5,743 were approved as violations.

Here in Lansdale, LPD reviewed 738 potential violations and approved 413.

Now, we have absolutely nothing against our friends at BusPatrol, but this is one company we'd love to see put out of business.  And here's the best part — you can make that happen.

All it takes is following one simple rule: When the red lights are flashing and the stop arm is out, STOP.

Those numbers show that this happens far more often than you might think and once is to many times.   With school starting again, slow down, pay attention, and be prepared to stop.  Saving a few seconds is never worth putting a child’s safety at risk.

Let's see if we can put BusPatrol out of business this school year!

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