As students across the state prepare to head back to the classroom, the Ohio State Highway Patrol is asking drivers to protect them by sharing the road with school buses and adhering to traffic laws.

Since 2020, 6,225 crashes involving a school bus have been reported in Ohio, five of which were fatal. Those crashes resulted in the deaths of five individuals, with one being a school-aged student.

“While school buses are considered the safest mode of transportation for students, their safety depends heavily on every driver remaining vigilant while behind the wheel,” Gov. Mike DeWine said. “There is nothing more important than our kids, and it’s our shared responsibility to keep them safe.”

DeWine recently signed a bill creating a new school bus safety grant program to help schools upgrade or add safety features to buses.

Some of those laws include:

● When a school bus is stopped with its red lights flashing and stop arm extended, all vehicles traveling in both directions must come to a complete stop at least 10 feet from the bus. This applies to two-lane roads and roads with a center-turning lane.

● On roads with four or more lanes, or divided highways, only traffic traveling in the same direction as the bus is required to stop. Oncoming traffic may proceed with caution.

● Motorists must remain stopped until the bus resumes motion or the bus driver signals that it is safe to proceed.

In addition to enforcing the laws, the patrol is tasked with ensuring school buses are safe before they leave the garage. As part of its commitment to school bus safety, school districts are required to get each bus inspected twice per year. These inspections guarantee all buses meet the state’s high safety standards.

“The commitment our personnel put into inspecting each school bus is truly remarkable,” said Charles A. Jones, OSHP superintendent. “Their attention to detail directly contributes to preventing crashes and ensuring students have a safe way to get to and from school, and school­ related events.”

One of the two yearly mandatory school bus inspections must be completed before the start of the school year, and the second is done at random. Since 2020, patrol personnel have performed nearly 195,000 inspections.