Town of Okotoks Municipal Enforcement is reminding the community about stopping for school buses.

This comes after officers have had multiple recent investigations where they found some confusion from drivers about what they should do when they meet a school bus, because the rules vary in Calgary and other jurisdictions.

Kelly Stienwand, Municipal Enforcement Manager says it's the law in Okotoks to come to a full stop when approaching a school bus with red flashing lights and a stop sign out.

"Wait for the stop sign to be retracted and for the flashing red lights to come off, this is really important because the kids when they get off the bus they understand how it works and they feel that traffic is stopped, and that they could run out in front of a bus. It's really important that people take the time to stop and wait until it's safe."

In some jurisdictions it is law to stop for a school bus on both sides of the road when there is a meridian, Stienwand says this is not the case in Okotoks.

"There's some confusion around that, if there's a meridian separating the traffic you are not obligated to stop, you can continue. Sometimes there's a crosswalk at that intersection, so we encourage people to slow down and to really use some extra caution because kids are unpredictable from time to time."

If there is no meridian separating traffic, vehicles on both sides of the road must come to a full stop for a bus loading or unloading children.

Stiewand adds Municipal Enforcement works closely with bus drivers in the area, and has provided them with the proper observations to make when a motorist causes a dangerous situation.

"In some cases they will capture the license plate number of the vehicle and they have a reporting system to bring it to our attention. Our officers will investigate after the fact, in most cases we're trying to educate the public to encourage compliance, it's a safety issue for all of us, but obviously they have the means to issue a ticket or fine in the appropriate cases."

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