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You know that little, red stop sign that folds out from the side of a school bus? That’s not just for decoration. In New York, school bus stop signs are bona fide stop signs, which means driving through them is illegal. 

But that’s not all. There are a few other restrictions associated with school bus stop signs.

NY Laws for Failing to Stop for a School Bus 

New York’s vehicle code is called the Vehicle and Traffic Law (VTL). It includes over 1,000 ways to get a ticket. Two of those ways are set out in Sections 1174(a) and 1174(b) of the VTL.

Section 1174(a) of the New York State VTL requires all drivers to stop while a school bus loads or unloads passengers. When the bus is stopped with its stop sign showing, it is illegal to start or continue driving. The only exception is when the driver or a police officer signals you to do so.

Section 1174(b) sets out requirements for the driver of the bus. The bus driver must do as follows:

• Instruct the passengers to cross the street in front of the bus if they need to.
• Keep the bus stopped with red signal lights on until after the passengers are at least 15 feet away from the bus and off of the road.

What Are the Penalties for Passing a Stopped School Bus in New York? 

Passing a stopped school bus in New York can get you a hefty ticket. It can also put childrens’ lives in danger. It’s just an all-around bad idea, no matter the circumstances. The penalties for violating section 1174(a) of the VTL by passing a stopped school bus range from fines to imprisonment. It all depends on the circumstances surrounding your ticket.

Fines

How high the fine is depends on how many times you’ve been convicted for the crime. For a first-time conviction, you can expect to pay up to $400. For a second conviction, the fine goes up to $750. For a third conviction, the fine maxes out at $1,000.

Surcharges

Surcharges are additional penalties added to the ticket once you’ve been convicted. The cost of the surcharge varies from place to place and can be either $88 or $93.

Insurance Increases

The worst financial penalty of getting a ticket for passing a stopped school bus is the insurance increase. According to Zebra, the average insurance increase for this kind of conviction is 27%. 

If you’re paying the average price for car insurance in New York ($1,688), you can expect to pay $455.76 more each year for up to four years. That’s up to $1,823.04 in indirect costs.

Points

A ticket for passing a stopped school bus in New York is worth five points. That makes it worse than most speeding tickets.

If you get more than five points on your license in an 18-month period, you will have to pay the Driver Responsibility Assessment (DRA) fee. And if you get 11 or more points in that period, your license will be suspended.

Fees

The Driver Responsibility Assessment fee is an annual fee that you have to pay when you get six or more points on your driver license. This only counts active points, which are points earned within the last 18 months, so points from violations older than that won’t count toward your total.

The DRA fee costs $100 for your sixth point and $25 for each point after that. You will pay that price each year for three years. For example, let’s say you get 10 points on your license. That means you’d be paying $600 in total.

Suspension

If you get 11 or more points on your driver license within an 18-month period, your license will be suspended. A suspended license is an invalid license, which means you will not be legally allowed to use it to drive on any public property.

After the suspension term has expired and you have paid the suspension lift fee, your license will be returned to you.

Jail Time

Even a first-time conviction for passing a stopped school bus in New York can result in up to 30 days in jail. Get a second or third conviction, however, and the jail time jumps six times over. A second or third conviction for passing a stopped school bus can result in up to 180 days in jail. This is in addition to any or all of the other penalties listed above.

Do You Have to Stop for a School Bus on the Opposite Side of the Road? 

Yes, you must stop for a school bus even if it is on the other side of a divided highway. The reason for this is that there may be children about to cross onto your side of the road. After the school bus starts driving again, be sure to double check for any children that may be passing in front of your vehicle.

Tips to Avoid School Bus Tickets in NY 

There are a few ways to avoid school bus tickets in New York. The best way is to make sure you stay put and don’t take your foot off the brakes when a school bus is stopped in front of you on either side of the ride. Here are some other tips:

• Keep an eye out for school busses in the opposite direction.
• Make a mental note whenever you enter a school zone.
• Try to remember the bus routes where you drive most often.

How to Fight a Passing a School Bus Stop Sign Ticket in NY 

If you’ve been issued a ticket for passing a school bus stop sign in New York, don’t pay it. Instead, take your case to court and win it with WinIt. With the help of WinIt’s expert attorney partners, you can potentially fight your ticket and get it dismissed outright. That means no fines, no DRA fees, and—best of all—no insurance increase.

WinIt and our attorney partners do not fight criminal traffic tickets.