Florida’s School Bus Stop-Arm Law
Florida’s school bus stop-arm law is simple in principle. Under Florida law, when a school bus stops and displays its stop signal, every driver approaching it must come to a full stop. This applies from either direction in most cases, and drivers must wait until the bus turns off the signal before moving again. The one exception: if you’re on a divided road with a raised median, a physical barrier, or at least 5 feet of unpaved space between you and the bus, you don’t have to stop if you’re heading the opposite direction.
Why Passing on the Children’s Side Is Treated More Seriously
Florida treats passing on the side where kids get on and off even more seriously than just failing to stop. That’s the side where a child could actually be crossing in front of your car.
How Camera Enforcement Works
Many Florida school buses now have cameras mounted specifically to catch these violations. . School districts are allowed to use them to issue citations even without an officer present. The bus has to have clear signage warning drivers that it’s camera-enforced. There’s also a mandatory 30-day warning period before any district can start actually fining people when a new camera program launches.
What It Costs If a Camera Catches You
- Just failing to stop: $200. That’s the same fine whether an officer catches you or a camera does.
- Passing on the children’s side: $400 if an officer catches you, but $200 if it’s a camera. The penalty is actually lower for camera enforcement on this one.
- An extra surcharge gets tacked on either way, normally $65, but only $25 if it’s camera-enforced.
- Do it again within 5 years, and you’re looking at a license suspension. That’s 6 months to a year for a simple stop violation, or up to 2 years for passing on the children’s side.
- Points on your license: 4 points normally, or 6 if someone’s seriously hurt or killed. But if a camera alone catches you, the camera adds no points at all.
The Bottom Line
When those lights start flashing and the stop sign swings out, Florida’s school bus stop-arm law requires you to stop, whether or not an officer is anywhere in sight.
Reviewed by Michael P. Maddux, Esq. | Board Certified Criminal Trial Lawyer | Florida Super Lawyer for 16 Consecutive Years