Schools

Five Mass. School Bus Laws You Might Not Have Known

School's back in session in Acton, but were you aware of these state laws on school buses?

By Andy Sylvia

Most Acton students know the "Rules of the Bus," but here are a few Massachusetts' state laws about school buses you might not have known.

#1. Everyone knows to stop when a school bus is loading and unloading passengers, but what you may not know is that if you don’t stop, you could get a ticket of up to $250. That fine can go up to $2,000 and a suspended license of up to a year for subsequent offenses (MGL 90-14)

#2. Oh, speaking of stopping behind a stopped bus, even fire trucks, police cars and ambulances with their sirens on have to stop until the passengers have been loaded or unloaded. (MGL 89-7B)

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#3.  Tell your kids to sit down, because bus drivers can be fined up to $500 if they drive the bus when the kids aren’t sitting down, or if they have more school children than seats. (MGL 90-7L)

#4.  Anybody caught throwing rocks at a school bus can be fined up to $500 and be sent to jail for a year. (MGL 159-104)

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#5. Unless they’re on roads not open to other drivers, school bus drivers can’t go faster than 40 miles per hour if they’re transporting kids. (MGL 90-17)


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