Patrol Readies For Return Of School Buses

The State Highway Patrol is gearing up for the coming school year and traffic violations related to private vehicles as they interact with school buses. According to the Patrol, over the last 5 school years there have been over 56-hundred traffic crashes involving school buses in the state. While many of those occur in major cities, our area has had its fair share. Since the fall of 2016, Wood County has had 46 accidents involving school buses, Allen has had 43, and 27 in Seneca County. There have been 22 such crashes in Hancock County, 7 each in Putnam and Hardin, and 3 in Wyandot County.

State law mandates that motorists stop for school busses loading and unloading with flashing lights activated. The lives of children are at stake. There have been 6 fatal school bus crashes over the last 5 years across the state.

An interactive map on crashes for school buses and other vehicles is available here.