Why do school buses hold their stop sign out when no one's even crossing?

Sometimes when I'm behind a bus or there's one on the other side of the street that has its stop sign out, I notice that there's no one crossing, which pisses me off because it seems so unnecessary. I can understand why they may need to do it for little elementary school kids, but shouldn't regular ed middle school and high school students know by then not to just dart into the road? And if they don't... well I'll keep that thought to myself :P What makes it even more annoying is when they stop and hold out the sign right at a fricking stoplight and there's a long line of students getting on or off, so now there are a bunch of cars lined up around me, and I've just missed my green light and have to wait for it to turn green again (there's this one particular light that takes an agonizingly long 2 min before the light turns green again). I have no problems whatsoever if some kids really do need to cross, but unnecessary things like these annoy me easily. So whyy do they do it? D:
Additional Details
Ok, for those of you who seem to have misunderstood some parts of the question... this isn't really about the kids who actually must cross. I will gladly wait for kids who have to cross to the other side of the road. It's not the waiting itself, but waiting when it doesn't seem necessary- when no one's crossing and the bus driver knows no one's going to be crossing. And I separated age groups. I know little kids are wild and you never know what they're going to do, so the stop sign must be out regardless of whether they're crossing or not.

And sorry, guys, but I really don't understand some of your sympathy for middle and high schoolers who don't know the "look both ways before crossing" rule, or those kids who assume there are no cars around or that everyone's going to stop for them. I think at that age they should take that rule seriously. I may be impatient but I do look to see if people are on the road and I'd never try to hurt someone who was

John-a-roni

Whenever a bus stops, it stops traffic on both sides of the street for the safety. Just because the children don't cross today doesn't mean they wont stop tomorrow. It also forces drivers to pay attention to their surroundings.

If the light takes too long adjust what time you leave or find an alternate route. School busses operate on a pretty tight schedule. Try leaving five minuets early.

Rapid Fire

I am a school bus driver. The fact that you are inconvenienced for 2 MINUTES while I discharge my passengers safely is of absolutely no consequence to me. The safety of the children is paramount and my only concern. Let me explain.

High school students are, for the most part, nice polite kids. Put 30 of them on a school bus and they turn into blithering idiots. And they WILL cross in front of a bus and enter the roadway without looking regardless of what you perceive to be correct.

And the stop sign does not come out unless I arm the system with a switch. I do have the option of stopping the bus without the safety flashers and the stop arm operating.

The only problem that I see from your question is that someone needs an attitude adjustment. But I am quite sure that has been pointed out to you before.

gib

Let me explain,,,,, It is against the law to pass a shool bus when the bus is stopped and the STOP SIGN is OUT. This is for the safety of all the riders getting on or exiting the bus. If you go ahead and pass the bus you will get a baaaaaddddd ticket...... Got it?.....So get over your road rage, calm down and give the kids a chance. One of them might be yours. Thank You

kenbgray

There are rules that the bus driver has to follow, if they upset you, to bad. Leave sooner and learn to have a little patient.

wayne g

It works with the door. Door open - sign gos out. Door closes - sign
folds back in. Tip of the year: If you are one who is always in a hurry
while behind the wheel, try leaving home earlier. It keeps down lots
of stress.

â™¥ kayyy â™¥

it comes out automatically. it is there for protection of the children. no matter the age, several children have been hit and killed by drivers who disobeyed the law and drove through a bus' stop sign.

Firebird

It's automatically connected to a little switch that is behind the handle the driver uses to open the door. The driver doesn't have a choice to not stop traffic on both sides of the road. Traffic both ways must stop.

I take it you never rode a school bus.

hot_tamale962

alot of kids misbehave and run across the road and you just cant tell what one will do

Fred C

Who are you to judge when a child may run across the street to or from the bus? It is the law that traffic stops, even traffic going the other way, unless there is a centre median. That is all over the US and Canada. If adhering to a law that is meant to protect young children I suggest you need an attitude change. The law has to apply to all school buses, regardless of whether they are transporting 6 year olds or 15 year olds.
Actually we just had an accident where a child was hit by somebody with your attitude. You want to be this driver?
http://www.winnipegfreepress.com/canada/breakingnews/null-40256157.html
If keeping children safe makes you miss your light, leave earlier so you are ahead of the bus with the students you care so little about.
Wow, 2 minutes that you will never recover for the rest of your life.

heartzablaze215

Because it's the law. If waiting two minutes bothers you that much then avoid that light lol

StardustGoldenDawn

I don't know how old you are , but as an ADULT you'd better learn to wait and be patient. If traffic is stopped for children going to and from school, get over it, be patient. Just wait until you have children of your own, you'll be doing plenty of waiting your turn. The world does not revolve around YOU. Sorry, but it's the damn truth! Love ya! PEACE.

Soon2b Mrz.Knowls 10.1.9

its the law..
its safety..
its is mandatory..
if the stop sign was to be broken or if it somehow didnt go off and some kid got hit by a car while crossing the street, there would be touble!..
its a sing of respect for the little ones who need to be protected..
even if it was for college students, it doesnt matter, it is better to be safe than sorry.

ps. I understand your grief but,,hmm what can we do?
pss. maybe figure out a different route tomorrow?

longboarder

its the law
whatever

wvparanormal

The short answer is, they do it just to piss you off.

The long answer is that the bus driver is responsible for the safety of every kid getting on, getting off and staying on the bus. They need to be able to pay attention to what all of those kids are doing instead of having to worry about immature drivers like yourself getting pissed off because they are delayed an agonizing 2 minutes and what kind of moronic action you may take.

StephenWeinstein

First, it's illegal to pass a school bus that is discharging children, except when they discharge the entire busload at the school, so it is not the sign that is delaying you at the traffic light; you would be required to wait (and miss the light) anyway.

Second, the sign may not have an independent control. It might do its thing automatically when the driver opens the door.

Friendly Stranger..

The main reason is because children are to be watched for at all times. Children are unpredictable. You may never know if one of them may run to the other side of the street. Traffic is stopped at both sides of the street to ensure that the children safely on the bus as they approach it.

streetymalinko

it comes out automatically DUH!!!!!

Ace

its actually so they don,t have 2 different levers and a safety thing but the stop sign is rigged to open when the door is opened by the driver, so no matter what if the door opens the stop sign comes out.

bryanteffinwilliams

its automatic when they open the doors the signs come out... its retarded

DOH

sorry i dont understand your question

ned_diddley_flanders

I'll bet the bus driver is just having fun messing with you!

this-is-my s

Who gives a fckin crap?

NoSpam

If kids are being loaded or unloaded, I'm fine to wait...even when I'm trying to take my own kids to a school our public buses don't drive them to. But, when there isn't a sign of a kid ANYWHERE and the bus driver is chatting with the daycare employee while cars back up 15 deep both ways on one of the busiest streets in a neighborhood? That's ridiculous.

NoSpam

settingitstraight

Did you ever take a driver's test or are you an Illegal Immigrant who never took a driver's test? IT'S THE LAW THAT A DRIVER STOPS FOR A SCHOOL BUS WHEN IT IS STOPPED NO MATTER WHAT!! People like you shouldn't even be driving if you don't want to obey the laws of the road. Why don't you just sell your car and walk to work and walk everywhere else!! You don't deserve to be driving! Driving is a privilege! How DARE you even complain about this!

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