The counties of Cabell, Greenbrier and Kanawha in West Virginia recently completed a pilot program involving extended school bus stop arms in order to determine whether these showed a decrease in the illegal passing of stopped school buses.
Extended stop arms include two types of stop signs: The one seen in routine stop arms and another that extends out six feet from the school bus.
At the conclusion of the pilot program, Cabell County reported a 35 percent decrease in stop-arm violations, while Greenbrier County reported a 60 percent decrease and Kanawha reported a 50 percent decrease.
Although the results of the program seem promising, Mike Pickens, executive director of the West Virginia Department of Education (WVDE) Office of School Transportation, said education and awareness of illegal passing laws are very important.
“While we are encouraged by the reduction in passing violations, we also know there is education to be done among our drivers,” he said. “Although we saw improvement, Kanawha County reported the stop signs had been hit by drivers six times since the pilot began in August.”
To address this, the West Virginia Department of Education is partnering with West Virginia Division of Highways and the West Virginia State Police to help educate the public on these laws.
The WVDE has been working closely with Bus Safety Solutions Inc., the vendor of the extended stop arm, to address minor mechanical issues raised by bus drivers during the pilot program, such as increasing bolt size and adding reflective tape. The company will correct the issues within 60 days. After this time, the repairs will be evaluated and WVDE said in a statement that it anticipates adding the product as an option in its specifications list so all counties may purchase these for their fleets if they choose.
