Officers from the La Porte City Police Department will be increasing patrols to ensure that drivers are following extended school bus stop arm laws.
Beginning Monday, Nov. 5, La Porte City Police Chief Tom Owens says extra patrols will be dedicated to observing drivers and cite drivers who violate the state law.
Owens said his department is receiving complaints from the public of motorists passing school buses when the stop arm is activated. He stressed that his department has zero tolerance for this type of violation and motorists will be stopped and ticketed if the law is not followed.
This increased effort will be paid for through the police department’s overtime fund.
Indiana law requires that motorists stop when a school bus has its stop arm signal device extended. This law applies on all roadways and for all vehicles approaching from both directions, unless the roadway is divided by a physical barrier. In that case, only vehicles traveling in the same direction of the bus are required to stop.
