Sharing the road
A school bus ahead of you on a two-lane road has stopped and its red lights are flashing. What must you do?
- Stop, from either direction, and remain stopped until the red lights stop flashing. Correct answer
- Slow to 25 mph and pass the bus with caution.
- Stop only if you are traveling in the same direction as the bus.
Why
Flashing red lights on a school bus mean children are getting on or off and may cross the street. On a two-lane road you must stop whether you are behind the bus or coming toward it, and you stay stopped until the children are safely across and the red lights stop flashing. Yellow flashing lights are the warning stage: slow down and prepare to stop. The only exception is when the bus is on the other side of a divided highway or a multilane highway with two or more lanes in each direction; then you do not need to stop. Passing a stopped school bus with its red lights flashing can cost you a fine of up to $1,000 and a one-year suspension of your driving privilege.
Where this comes from
California Driver's Handbook, June 2025 edition. The correct answer is Stop, from either direction, and remain stopped until the red lights stop flashing.
The rule behind this one
Sharing the road in California goes through the whole topic, with the page of the California Driver's Handbook behind every rule.
In real life
More on sharing the road
- You are driving behind a large truck. How can you tell whether the truck driver can see you?
- Which statement about sharing the road with motorcycles in California is correct?
- A streetcar is stopped at a safety zone marked on the road. What is the fastest you may pass it?
- Which vehicles are required to stop before crossing railroad tracks, even when no train is in sight?