Deputies will watch traffic from bus

Amherst County sheriff’s deputies plan to ride school buses to signal nearby patrol vehicles to stop motorists who pass stopped or slowing school buses with flashing red lights.

The technique has been used by other law enforcement agencies and, in Amherst County, it’s a response to continual complaints, said sheriff’s Lt. Greg Turner.

Amherst County bus drivers, who logged more than 1.1 million miles on county roads last year, complain about every other week, said Randy Tschetter, the school system’s transportation supervisor.

The chief factor in such behavior most often is driver inattention, said sheriff’s Deputy John Ferguson, 31, a school resource officer beginning his third year at Amherst County High School.

The behavior is nonetheless dangerous and something bus drivers can’t always focus on, he said.

“It’s kind of hard for them when they’re trying to drive the kids on the bus,” Ferguson said. That’s because drivers already are busy. “They’ve got to keep track of these kids,” Tschetter said.

Logistically, offending drivers already have an advantage.

Once someone flies by a stopped bus, a driver must of course try to get a description of the vehicle and then notify bus dispatchers, who then call the sheriff’s office. Minutes tick by.

With a deputy on the bus relaying an accurate vehicle description to a nearby deputy in a car, “it’s going to reduce the response time drastically” and frees the bus driver to focus more on students’ safety, Ferguson said.

Deputies plan to ride buses and station cars near routes throughout the school year, during morning and afternoon commute times.

The majority of problems occur on U.S. 29 in Madison Heights, on two lanes in either direction separated by a center turn lane, he said. Under state law, drivers in both directions must stop if the road has no median or barrier.

“As soon as the (bus) lights are red, you can’t pass that bus,” Ferguson said.

Numbers of exactly how often the offense occurs are hard to come by and were compiled years ago, ranging from hundreds per day into the thousands.

Undisputed is that such an offense can be costly in more than one way.

For instance, the state Department of Motor Vehicles assesses such an offending driver with six points on the driver’s license, the same as a drunken driving conviction, and it counts for 11 years.

The actual offense is classified as reckless driving and punishable by a maximum fine of at least $250. And the offender’s vehicle insurance premiums may increase, as insurers keep up with such records and have their own point systems, according to the DMV, which also awards up to five points over five years for drivers with a valid Virginia license who have no violations or suspensions.

The DMV suspends or revokes licenses of drivers who get 18 or more demerits in 12 months or 24 points in 24 months.