Drivers are often confused whether or not they have to stop when they see a school bus stop on a divided road or highway.

Sen. Steven Rhoads, R-Massapequa, has introduced legislation (S.8329) to end the confusion by stipulating in state law that vehicles traveling in the opposite direction of a stopped school bus do not have to stop if a physical barrier is present between the different directions of travel. The legislation would apply to divided highways with four or more lanes.

According to educationweek.org, New York is the only state in the nation that requires vehicles traveling in both directions on a multi-lane road divided by a median to stop for a stopped school bus. According to published reports, drivers in many areas of the state have complained about the divided highway scenario in the aftermath of 2019 legislation that allowed school districts to put cameras on buses to catch drivers passing school buses that are stopped to pick up or drop off children.

“Now that the school bus camera law is being implemented in several jurisdictions, however, it has highlighted an unforeseen problem. Drivers traveling in the opposite direction of a stopped school bus along multi-lane divided highways are forced to come to a sudden and complete stop where it is unsafe to do so and where it is equally unsafe for children to attempt to cross. Consequently, for drivers in that situation, there is a heightened risk of accident and injury while encouraging children to cross a multi-lane divided highway, they should not cross.”

Last summer, the Albany Times Union reported some drivers have complained that tickets were issued to drivers in the lane furthest away from a school bus on a divided lane highway despite school districts not setting up bus routes in which a child would have to cross a highway divided by a median. The newspaper reported 5,064 cars passed South Colonie School District buses while the bus’ stop arm was out, but the county rejected 451 of those recordings, declining to send out tickets, while two other districts saw cases rejected because a vehicle was on the other side of a divided highway or the bus was stopped and off the road.