State Representative Jim Buchy
We All Have a Role to Play to Ensure a Safe School Year

Now that school has been back in session for a couple of weeks, we have all noticed the increased school bus traffic on the roads. Besides just the buses, high school students, teachers, principals and faculty members also travel to school each morning.

It is very important that we, as drivers, are cognizant of the increased traffic on the roads, and with school buses stopping to pick up and drop off children, the attention given to safety rest on everybody’s shoulders. The kids deserve to ride to and from school—as well as to extra curricular activities—in a safe environment.

Of course, as the people of west central Ohio know, Friday night is football night. On those nights, players, coaches and marching bands will be traveling to their destinations. The same goes for other days of the week with golf, volleyball, soccer, cross country and tennis teams. It is part of our duties on the road to be watchful for those buses and to ensure all travelers and passengers are safe.

Sadly, far too often, we hear of accidents among students and school buses. Every now and then on the House floor, a legislator will stand up to address the chamber and talk about a student in his or her district who was killed in an automobile accident. Like all accidents, there is no way to prevent them from happening altogether, but if we all take the time to remember our responsibilities behind the wheel, we can do our best to minimize the risks.

Students also share in the responsibility to be well behaved and respectful while riding on the bus to make sure the bus drivers can do their jobs without distraction. Additionally, the seats on buses are engineered sort of like compartments. Therefore, in the case there is some kind of accident, the students have safety in front of them if they are seated properly. That helps to eliminate injuries. The key on school buses is for children to sit on the buses and behave. Now, I know as well as anybody that expecting young kids to behave is not always easy, but it is important that they understand their role in maintaining safe roads for themselves and other drivers.

I want to wish all area schools and sports teams the best of luck this season. But above all, I hope that this school year is a safe one for all of our students, teachers and faculty.

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