Back to School: Keep Safe Around School Buses

It's that time of year again -- parents are stocking up on school supplies, kids are sighing and dreaming of an endless summer vacation, and school bus drivers are gearing up to get back on the road.

Keep these things in mind for driving around school buses to keep everyone safe.

Motorists must stop from either direction when a school bus displays alternating flashing lights or when a stop sign control arm is extended.

Motorists may not proceed until:

- The red lights are deactivated and the stop is retracted,

- The bus driver signals them to proceed, or

- The bus resumes motion. 

This video shows a district that implemented cameras to detect when drivers drive past school bus stop signs, showing many instances of drivers ignoring the stop sign.

  

Be extra aware around school buses. They must stop at railroad crossings, and they may make other unanticipated stops. Do NOT pass if the red lights are activated or the stop sign is extended.

Children have lost their lives from unaware drivers -- don't let it happen on your watch!

 

The Four Dangerous States of Mind

It's been a while since we've revisited what the four dangerous states of mind are, and it's one of those topics that sometimes gets overlooked. It's not attached to any specific activity (trenching, climbing a ladder) and nowhere does OSHA say that you have to talk about any of this. But these are an underlying root cause of many, if not most, incidents.

Our earlier post goes into detail on each state of mind, but we'll add them here too for a review:

- Rushing - If you move too fast, you can make mistakes and miss hazards.

- Frustration - Easy to lose focus, get swept up into emotion, and miss details.

- Fatigue - When you're tired, it's hard to keep your mind on the task at hand.

- Complacency - when you've done the same thing hundreds of times before, it can become background noise.... even when it's hazardous.

Now, making sure that your mind is always on task is never going to be a replacement for a robust safety program with strong training and controls, but it is an important piece of the puzzle not to be overlooked. Companies can step in by implementing measure to emphasize employee mental health, ensuring deadlines are realistic, and making sure training is repeated enough to combat complacency.
 

Keep safety top of mind every time!