MONTGOMERY COUNTY, Md. — Police in Montgomery County are asking drivers to be vigilant on the roads after a driver almost hit a student who was getting off a school bus.
The incident happened along Old Columbia Pike in Maryland. A video posted on Twitter and Facebook by the Montgomery County Police Department (MCPD) shows a student get off the bus, a car drives past the bus's 'stop' sign, nearly hitting the student.
WUSA9 found the MCPS transportation policy online, which states “No students are scheduled to cross a divided highway to board a bus.” WUSA9 reached out to Montgomery County Public Schools to see if it was within their policy to let a student cross a large street and why the student was not dropped off on the sidewalk.
A spokesperson for Montgomery County Public Schools confirmed there is a bus stop on Old Clumbia Pike and Avonshire Drive that is serviced by the Northeast Consortium high schools of Blake, Paint Branch and Springbrook. The spokesperson said the bus is only servicing the door side, or northbound travel, of the bus because there is no community on the other side, just a shopping center.
"Buses are routed along this corridor of Old Columbia Pike so students do not have to cross that many lanes of traffic," the spokesperson said.
Neighbors say they've seen students get dropped off on the correct side of the street — on the sidewalk, but they end up crossing the street anyway to get to the 7-Eleven store.
"We train and remind our bus operators to ensure students are crossing in front of the bus when the red lights are activated but cannot control students once they are off the bus," the MCPS spokesperson said.
The driver caught in the video will get a $250 fine.
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