LIVONIA, Mich. (WXYZ) — A yellow school bus honking at drivers before letting kids off the bus is becoming the norm on Middlebelt Road in Livonia.
A firm honk on Wednesday afternoon was captured on video by the mother of a 6-year-old.
“Two days ago, the bus driver honked at least three or four times,” Megan Callow said.
Another parent couldn’t believe that cars were not stopping for his son's school bus.
“I was just stunned by cars on both sides of the road passing the bus,” Chuck Bartz said.
In a video Bartz shared with 7 Action News, you can see cars flying past the school bus while children got off.
“Someone’s life is in danger when they aren’t paying attention.,” Bartz said.
His 10-year-old Brandon says this happens all the time.
“I really don’t like how people are not paying attention,” the fourth grader told us.
Parents say they’ve reached out to Livonia Public Transportation and school leaders.
“A couple of neighbors have reached out to the police as well,” Callow said.
At the moment, Middlebelt is where the bus stops. Just feet away is a side street where parents want the bus stop to be moved to.
“It's just scary. It’s a busy road and there’s not so busy places nearby. I don’t understand why we can’t move it,” Callow said.
Callow says the bus currently makes a right turn on Rayburn off Middlebelt to drop other students off before looping around to drop her kindergartner off.
“The bus already goes there before it drops the kids off and instead of stopping on the side street, it goes around to the main street and drops the kids off,” Bartz said.
7 Action News reached out to Livonia Public Schools and they said:
“We share the concern of this citizen, and will be alerting our Transportation Department supervisor, as well as our Public Safety director. We have a close working relationship with our local police departments and will certainly notify them of this particular trouble area. We do have a process by which bus stop changes may be requested. We will review this area with our team."
- Livonia Public Schools
According to Michigan law MCL 257.682 (1), you can’t pass or overtake “a school bus that has stopped and is displaying 2 alternately flashing red lights located at the same level.”
Drivers who pass a stopped bus can face fines between $100 and $500 as well as community service hours.
Parents have a message for drivers.
“If a paper flew out, a kid could not even think twice and go step to get it, and if a car is directly next to the bus or flying by, there is not safety in that,” Callow said.
Bartz added, “They are distracted easily. They drop something, run out to the street and the can be easily killed.”
