MAUMEE, Ohio — Your child might start and end their day by riding the school bus.
After hearing tragic stories of children being hit while getting off the bus or crashes involving school buses, you might be wondering what is being done to keep your kids safe as they are being transported to and from school.
Police play a role in school bus safety, especially in Maumee.
Maumee Police take that extra precaution and patrol bus stops in the area.
Police say their presence helps to slow drivers down around school buses and promotes general safety on the roadways during school hours.
The Ohio State Highway Patrol says, almost 4,000 traffic crashes involved school buses from 2016 to 2018 in Ohio.
Those crashes killed four people and injured 1,268 people, though none of those killed were on a school bus.
Last year in Maumee, police tracked 11 violations of drivers running a stopped school bus.
Drivers are required to stop at least ten feet in front of or behind a school bus when flashing lights and an extended arm are displayed.
You cannot resume driving until the school bus begins moving.
"Drivers need to be vigilant when they see school buses stopped alongside the road. Remember, there are children there, not just a huge school bus," said Lt. Jeff Siebenaler of the Maumee Police Department.
Every bus used to transport students is inspected before the beginning of the school year and once randomly during the year by OSHP.