Back-to-School Traffic Safety: Driving & Auto Insurance Tips for Parents

When the school year begins, neighborhoods and school zones often bustle with pedestrian traffic as people hustle to and from school buses or cross the street. Paying attention to school traffic safety around school zones and buses is crucial in preventing accidents and subsequent hikes to your premium, while keeping students, other pedestrians, drivers and yourself safe from serious injury or fatality.

Keep reading to learn more about traffic laws you should be mindful of when driving in a school zone, how risky driving can increase your insurance rates and tips on driving safely as students return back to school and throughout the year.

On This Page

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  What Are the Most Common Traffic Laws Around a School?

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  How To Drive Safely Through School Traffic

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  Can a School Zone Traffic Ticket Impact My Car Insurance Rates?

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  FAQs

What Are the Most Common Traffic Laws Around a School?

Even in a hurry, you should never pass stopped school buses loading or unloading, which is illegal in every state and could potentially result in fines of hundreds of dollars.^[1] For example, passing a school bus in California has fines between $150 and $1,000, while in Massachusetts, fines range from $250 to $2,000. Depending on your state, repeated offenses could also result in jail time or license revocation.^[2]

Additionally, you’ll want to pay attention to school zones, which require you to drive slower than usual for specific stretches of the road. School zones can extend anywhere from 200 to 500 feet from school grounds or a crossing, typically indicated by road signs or traffic officers informing drivers if they’re entering or leaving a school zone.^[3] Speed limits inside school zones vary by state but range between 15 to 25 miles per hour.^[4]

Driving while using a cellphone to make calls or text is illegal in several states, but some states that don’t otherwise outlaw it do when in school zones, such as Arkansas, Florida, Louisiana and Texas.^[5]

How To Drive Safely Through School Traffic

Driving through school traffic can be chaotic and requires constant awareness and patience towards pedestrians and other drivers. With many unpredictable pedestrians, cars stopping for buses and frequent merging for pick-ups or drop-offs, driving recklessly could result in a potential accident that causes a severe injury or fatality. Keep in mind that while student pedestrians are most common during the active school year, schools often host extracurricular activities and events at all times of the year.

Here’s a quick list of tips to consider when driving through school zones to keep you, other drivers and students safe.

Slow Down and Obey Traffic Laws

School zones often reduce their speed limits to around 15 to 25 miles per hour, at which point a pedestrian-involved crash only has a 10% chance of severe injury or fatality.^[4][6] However, once you start ramping up speed, those odds skyrocket, with a 40% chance at 30 miles per hour and an 80% chance at 40 miles per hour.^[6]

Traffic laws exist to enforce focus and attention to the road, including other drivers and pedestrians. It’s not just a good idea to follow traffic laws to avoid a ticket or a liability claim but also to prevent potential harm to those and others.

Practice Being a Courteous Driver

Avoid aggressive driving and keep calm, which can help you avoid risky behavior that might result in an accident or ticket. Give others the right of way when it's their turn instead of zooming forward or trying to merge into a spot or snag a parking space. Be patient with children and the elderly who may take longer at crosswalks, as well as pedestrians who may behave unexpectedly, such as those rushing into the road to catch a bus or not paying attention to traffic.

Stop for Buses

School buses typically flash yellow lights to indicate they are preparing to load or unload children at bus stops, so it’s a good idea to slow down preemptively. Red lights and an extended arm with a stop sign indicate that the bus is actively loading or unloading when it is illegal to pass. Ensure you wait until the red lights stop flashing, the arm has retracted and the bus starts moving again before you let your foot off the brake.

Between 2013 and 2022, 16% of school-bus-related fatalities were pedestrians, including those waiting at the bus stop, loading onto or off of the bus.^[7] Those unloading from a school bus often cross in front of the bus to reach the other road or may behave erratically.

As a result, you should give buses 10 feet of space around them while stopped, as this is the most dangerous area for children leaving or entering the vehicle.^[1]

You should also wait for pedestrians to pass and the bus to fully resume motion before moving, as children could suddenly appear where you aren’t expecting them to be, potentially getting struck by your car.

Avoid Stopping on Crosswalks

Do not stop your car on top of a crosswalk, as this could unintentionally force pedestrians to walk into the street to get around you. Forcing pedestrians into the street's path could put them in the way of oncoming traffic, potentially resulting in an accident from oncoming traffic.

Pay Attention to Cross-Guards and Crosswalk Signals

Crossing guards are often posted at intersections or crosswalks to assist students crossing the street and to indicate to drivers that pedestrians are crossing. Young children may not be immediately visible, and crossing guards help drivers notice their presence with reflective safety gear and stop signs. Crosswalks also feature signage to indicate that drivers should look for potential pedestrians crossing even if they aren’t immediately visible.

Keep Your Eye Out for Runners or Bicycle Riders

Ensure you wait for runners and other pedestrians to finish crossing the road before moving when stopped to avoid hitting or needing to swerve if they suddenly stop or change their pace. Bicycles can share the lane with drivers on most roads, but some bikes, especially smaller children's bikes, may be more challenging to see. Keep your eye out for bicyclists and give them at least three feet of space, which is the law in 35 states.^[8]

Be Mindful of Children and Pedestrians

Smaller children walking on crosswalks can be more challenging to see from the seat of a car, especially for larger vehicles. Leave space when stopping at a crosswalk to ensure you can see no pedestrians in front of you before resuming driving. Some younger children may not obey regular traffic laws or be aware of their surroundings, so it is up to you to be doubly diligent on their behalf.

Can a School Zone Traffic Ticket Impact My Car Insurance Rates?

Getting a traffic ticket, especially in a school zone, can negatively affect your insurance rates, as it can indicate to your insurance company that you are a negligent driver who is more likely to file a claim. Distracted driving and poor driving behaviors in school zones could result in an accident, increasing your car insurance premiums by 49% on average.^[9] Accidentally speeding in a school zone could also increase your car insurance rates by 25% on average.^[10]

Most insurance companies will consider traffic tickets on your driving record when determining your rates for three to five years, but depending on the cause of the ticket or your state, it could be longer.^[10] Being considered high-risk doesn’t just affect your rates — it could result in your insurance company dropping your coverage or nonrenewing your policy and make it difficult to find a replacement insurer.