Rutherford County Traffic Safety Task Force School bus Safety Traffic Enforcement

Promoting school bus safety for bus drivers and students will be the focus of a school bus safety event Wednesday, Dec. 15 sponsored by the Rutherford County Traffic Safety Task Force.

Murfreesboro Police Lt. Greg Walker said officers will ride school buses and watch for vehicles that do not stop when the school bus stop sign is extended and the red lights on the bus are flashing.

Officers will watch for other hazardous moving violations such as drivers driving distracted and talking, texting, and holding their cell phones while driving.

“Please keep in mind, if you are operating a vehicle on a roadway that is not separated by any type of median, you must stop for buses when the bus is stopped, stop sign is out, and the red lights are flashing,” Walker said.

Walker said drivers must stop for school buses when the road is not divided by a median.

Tennessee Highway Patrol Sgt. Jeffery Boyd said troopers are participating to ensure school students can be transported safely to and from school daily.

“Students are our greatest assets and our futures,” Boyd said. “We need to ensure their safety when loading and unloading the buses so they can arrive at their destinations safely and securely.”

Drivers can wait a few minutes for the students to load safely, the sergeant said. Failure to obey laws about school bus safety could be life-changing for the students and the driver who decides to run the school bus stop signs.