Law Changes for

Law Changes for

Bus Stops on

Divided Highways

With the • return of about 1,000,000 children to school, John T. Hanna, Director of the Virginia Highway Safety Division, ind Raymond L. Wimbish, Supervisor of Pupil Transportation for the State Department of Education, asked today for the utmost in caution from motorists when in the vicinities of schools. They noted that last year in Virginia 34 children between the sges of five and 14 died in traffic ss pedestrians and five more were killed on bicycles. An additional 894 in this age group were injured ss pedestrians and 546 on bicycles. At the same time, Wimbish, and Hanna both called attention to the change in the law requiring a stop for a halted school bus. The officials pointed out that the stop is not necessary if the bus is on the opposite side of a highway divided by a physical barrier or an unpaved area and is heading in the opposite direction from the motorist. The stop, they said, is still required on all other roads and when the motorist is approaching the bus from the rear on a divided highway. The motorists must remain halted until the road is clear of children and the bus again in motion. Bus drivers now must load and unload pupils on the sides of divided highways on which they live.

Wimbish further called attention to the fact that to have the protection of the law requiring stops, buses must be painted yellow and have markings and lighting as specified by the department of education. Virginia law, he stated, requries that any bus used for the principal purpose of transporting school children must be so painted and marked and be equipped with a warning device which will indicate whet the bus is about to stop, stopped and taking on or dischargin( children. The device must be o an approved type.