School District 73 asks drivers to “Brake 4 Buses”

Transportation Manager Sherry Kristjanson says student safety is at the forefront of her mind, following an incident in the United States.

“In Indiana, Tuesday morning, four children were struck. Three of them from the same family died at the scene. Last I heard, the one 11-year-old boy was in critical condition,” She says, “But yeah, two little twin boys, 6-years-old, and their 9-year-old sister.”

Kristjanson oversees 61 routes in the Kamloops Thompson School District, which take around 4,600 kids to school each day.

She says, their campaign started after they tracked just how many drivers illegally pass by those flashing red lights and signs.

“We did a study for about three weeks, and we had 84 individuals run our lights in that three week period, and that’s 84 too many.”

She says its not hard to find a bus driver who has experienced some close calls when being passed, sometimes even on the right-hand passenger side, “And so that’s more than distracted, that’s more than not paying attention; that is complete ignorance.”

Dave Degagne is part of the district’s team of 80 drivers, and with 16 years of experience, he can attest to just how many drivers seem to not take notice of buses stopped to let kids on or off.

Just two weeks ago, he says a vehicle quickly came behind the bus he was driving while kids were unloading.

“The mother standing on the side of the road, waiting for her kids, she ran out into the middle of the road, and stood in front of him and yelled and waved at him to stop before he came to a stop,” He says,”And the kids got through, and before she could get off the road, he was driving away.”

As a former RCMP officer, Degagne knows first hand, fines and penalty points don’t always deter problem drivers, and enforcing those rules doesn’t guarantee consequences either.

“We do have the capability, if you do obtain a license plate number, you can complete a form with the date, time, location, and restate what happened and send it in,” Degagne explains, “Whether charges are laid or they just contact the driver and give them a warning, I don’t know. But that’s the only avenue we have.”

The bottom line for drivers is clear with the campaign, he says: “Pay attention.”

by Dylana Milobar

School District 73 asks drivers to “Brake 4 Buses”

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