School Bus Lights Aren’t Suggestions

I realize that I complain a lot these days about what things cost and how people drive. I personally think it's too easy to get a driver's license in Montana, but that's for a different day.

I wrote about tailgaters a while back, so today it's the drivers who run the red lights on school buses. I drive through a school zone every day, and I'm used to slowing down, so I do. But yesterday I saw a guy not only fail to slow down when the lights came on but actually drive around the school bus.

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I drove a bus in the mid-eighties when I was pretending to be a college student, and it bugged me back then. In those days, if someone ran my lights, I had to get their plate number and be able to make a description of the driver. Then law enforcement would visit them with the ticket book.

So today, I thought maybe if the fines were bigger, people wouldn't do it as much. So I looked it up.

Get this: for a first offense, they can fine you between $500 and $1,000, PLUS give you 50 hours of community service. A third-time offender can expect to pay between $3,000 and $5,000 AND get jail time.

I don't know anybody who's ever been fined that much, but it's something to think about. It's worth waiting a minute or two of your life to keep kids safe or it's a very large fine.

Take a minute and help the kids be safe. And if you see somebody run the lights, get a picture of the plate.