Texas School Bus Safety Hits Home for This Wylie Dad

Living just a couple of blocks from several Wylie ISD schools in Abilene, I see school buses traveling our neighborhood roads every day. I also see impatience from drivers, including people I know.

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Friends and neighbors, we can do better.

October 19–23 is National School Bus Safety Week, and the Texas Department of Public Safety is reminding us to slow down, pay attention, and stop when required.

Eight Kids Give Me Eight Reasons to Care

All eight of my children attended Wylie schools and rode school buses. When I see that yellow bus, I think about the trust parents put in everyone sharing the road.

Whether you drive through Abilene, San Angelo, or anywhere else in Texas, somebody’s child is counting on you.

Know When Texas Law Requires You to Stop

When a stopped school bus is loading or unloading students with its red warning lights flashing, stop before reaching it. Stay stopped until the bus moves, its driver signals you forward, or the warning signals turn off.

On an undivided road, traffic approaching from both directions must stop. A concrete barrier or grassy median separating the roadways means opposing traffic does not have to stop. A center turn lane does not qualify.

Keep that in mind along stretches of Buffalo Gap Road, Antilley Road, and FM 707 here in Abilene—a center turn lane still means drivers in both directions must stop for a school bus with its red warning lights flashing.

Simple Habits Can Protect Our Children

DPS offers these reminders:

Slow down: Follow posted school-zone speed limits.

Look carefully: Children near bus stops can be hidden behind vehicles.

Put the phone away: Give driving your full attention.

Expect stops: Watch bus warning lights and anticipate children boarding or exiting.

Parents and guardians, remind children to wait safely away from traffic, stay alert, and follow their bus driver’s instructions.

Those Few Seconds Matter

NHTSA reports that 204 school-age children died in school-bus-related crashes nationwide from 2015 through 2024, including 77 pedestrians.

Those numbers represent families whose lives changed forever.

Please, give our bus drivers room to work and our children time to cross. Whatever has us rushing can wait. Every child deserves to make it home.

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