‘Be patient’: Officials urge drivers to obey laws for sharing road with school buses

RIVERTON — As Utah kids start a new school year, bus drivers give an urgent reminder to drivers to share the road with school buses.

Each year, Utah drivers commit over 100,000 school bus violations, according to the Utah Department of Transportation and the Utah Department of Public Safety. A large majority of them are drivers ignoring the red flashing lights and extended stop signs on the bus.

“They blow through the reds and I’m on my horn and then they look up, and I know when they look up, they’re looking at their phone and that is just a heart stopper every time,” Marcus Swainston, a bus driver in Jordan School District, said.

Swainston has been driving a school bus for 13 years, and in that time, he’s had a front-row seat to shocking driving behaviors.

“I’ve seen people doing their makeup, brushing their teeth, eating cereal, and I’ve even seen someone reading a book once,” Swainston said.

Swainston, who sits above most drivers while driving bus #1619, said the two most concerning behaviors he witnessed last year were distracted drivers using their cell phones, and road rage.

“I’ll get a lot of middle fingers. I’ve had people yell at me through my window, things of that nature,” he said. “When you’re behind me I can’t pull over, I’ve got to do what I’ve got to do.”

Despite the aggressive behavior he sometimes sees, Swainston stays focused on the road and the children on his bus. On average, he transports about 70 elementary-age and middle school students to schools each day in the Riverton and Herriman areas.

“We’re carrying the most precious cargo, we’re carrying people’s children,” he said.

Bus drivers all over the state of Utah go through a federally mandated four-week training when they first begin. Then, each additional year, they receive ongoing, continuing education.

In the Jordan School District, that training includes everything from a review of close calls to learning how to incorporate new technology to improve their driving skills.

“It involves everything from first aid to CPR, to defensive driving, to behavior management,” Luanne Smith, transportation trainer for the Jordan School District, said.

Along with being a trainer, Smith has also been a bus driver in the district for 13 years. She, too, has witnessed several children nearly hit by impatient or distracted drivers breaking the law.

“When you see those red flashing lights at the top, and that stop arm comes out, stop. Because students’ lives are at risk,” she said.

In Utah, the first offense for a driver passing a school bus’s extended stop sign is $1,000 and 10 hours of community service. Smith said drivers should expect that cameras on the bus will capture those violating the law, and the video will be turned over to local police. She said the law applies to e-bikes and scooter drivers as well.

“Don’t try to go past. Take the time, save the moment, save a life,” she said.

Along with patience and obeying the school bus stop sign law, Swainston is asking drivers to also slow down and give the buses room to turn.

“If you cut in front of me, this doesn’t stop on a dime,” he said. “And I can’t make this turn like I would in a car, I may end up over the pole, over the street signs, so I need more room.”

Swainston, who drives wearing a cowboy hat and boots, and decorates his bus with photos he’s taken over the years, hopes this school year will be one free of any injuries or major accidents. He said it’s possible if everyone does their part and puts safety first.

“Please just be patient, especially when we’re loading and unloading the kids, that’s the most critical part of our job,” he said.

School bus safety videos

These videos are provided by the Jordan School District for families to review for this coming school year.

• Stay safe on the school bus
• Stay safe on the school bus — field trip
• A safety reminder for national school bus safety week
• Stay safe on the school bus during COVID