Conference back40::soapbox

	I know in the town of Hudson the crossing gaurds ARE cops. 

    We tried to get a crossing guard for our private school.  City of Bowie
    says no.  We offer to pay for her time on our job, city says no.  We
    ask if we can hire a temporary cop, city says no.
    
    Try to drive anywhere in the city of bowie from 7-9AM or 2-4PM and you
    go 3 blocks and get stopped by a crossing guard.  They then take it
    upon themselves to direct traffic; in PG County crossing guards are
    crossing guards and NOT traffic cops.
    
    That's why it's a pisser

    School bus drivers aint stock car drivers.... But! one morning on my
    way to work. There was a merge of two to one lane. And although I had
    the right of way. Ms. Busdriver forced the issue. Thus exchanging some
    yellow for my brown paint! My-my-my! TAlk about endangering the lives
    of our children!
    
    Soooo! In the game even if your right, the game goes who tells what
    story to whom first. I guess I beat her to the punch telling this story
    to both the police and her boss. I havent seen her drive after that. 
    
    Sometimes it is not only the crossing guards,,,, its others! I guess
    the saying is alittle power goes to the heads....:)

I've known of at least two people in New Hampshire who were literally
forced off the road in the winter (one guy's car was totalled) by
school bus drivers. In both cases, while the evidence pretty clearly
indicated the bus driver to be at fault, they were not formally found
to be so by either police officials or insurance representatives. The
unwritten rule of thumb appears to be that the school bus has the right
of way, period.

    re right of way.
    
    there is only one thing you can do with the right of way as far as the
    law is concerned, and that is to YIELD it.
    
    trying to assert your right of way is a bad idea even if you're right.

>    trying to assert your right of way is a bad idea even if you're right.

Well, the bus driver's doing so certainly turned out to be a bad idea for
the two folks I mentioned, Dick. In the case of the total, the bus driver
was taking his half of the road a bit left of center - fair road conditions,
clear weather. The guy had two choices, hit the bus or steer over the snow
bank into the woods. He chose the latter and it cost him. Perhaps less
than if he'd hit the bus, but that didn't make it right.

    .6
    
    my point, jack, is that you should drive as if EVERYONE ELSE is a
    nutcase.  if there's a moment where right of way comes into question,
    YIELD without even thinking about it.
    
    i'm talking in the general case here - in the case when the school bus
    drove the guy off the road, there's not much the victim could have
    done.
    
    but it scares the DAYLIGHTS out of me to see like three-fourths of the
    cars on the road tailgating.  which they do - at 65 mph, you should be
    at least 130 feet behind the car in front.  if some arsehole moves into
    that space, let him.  move back some more.  oh, yes, you might be a few
    seconds later off the rotary, or a minute or two later getting through
    the stopsign, but i'd rather be home a minute late than in hospital or
    the dock on time.

    If your into the intersection, or your positioned someplace beyond the
    front bumper of the bus... And the bus still comes at you like your a
    nit in the ass of life... Thats what gives me some thoughts about who
    is driving behind that wheel! 
    
    If that was a fire truck or police car with lights and etc going...
    Certainly, you yield to them. But a yellow bus with the execption of
    when it stops and the lights flash....

    .8
    
    > If that was a fire truck or police car with lights and etc going...
    > Certainly, you yield to them. But a yellow bus
    
    george, if it is a case of yield or get whacked, i'll choose the former
    option every time - and i don't give a rat's arse WHOM i'm yielding to. 
    i have a very high regard for the paint on my car, and an even higher
    one for my own skin.

    .9 AAAh! I will concure! But when your there! And they cut on you like
    your not, as in this case! Thats how I got the paint exchance. Thank
    goodness it was an older truck!

Yep, not only do the school bus drivers think they have right of way under
all circumstances, but many of the car drivers around them think so, too.
It's funny to watch otherwise decent drivers **** up traffic in both
directions just to let a school bus make a turn that it could have made
unassissted about 5 seconds later.

    ...or the attitude of the fem bus driver. Asin, when I was a young
    learned driver... the instructor told me that you give women the right
    of way in the hallway. Not on the highway. On the highway the right of
    way is determined by the laws of the road.

    If you see a nut drving a school bus recklessly turn that nut into the
    P/D. Just think that it might be your child on the bus. I don't think
    any of us would want that person to get away with their madness.
    
    I have no qualms about picking up the phone, or stopping by the P/D to
    report a bad school bus driver.
    
    I don't think any of us should wait for an accident before we do
    anything about it. 

More than once, I have had accidents which where I was found "at fault" because
I drove off the road to avoid hitting or being hit by some idiot who then
continued merrily on down the road, oblivious to what they had just done.  As
a result of this, I paid insurance surcharges for a few years.  Now, for
anything short of a head-on collision, if I can't avoid an idiot, I'll stay on
the road and let them explain to the officer what they were doing making
an illegal left turn in front of me, etc.

Bob

    Crossing guards and school buses, grrrrrrrrrr.
    
    I could never understand the logic of holding up traffic at a light to
    let folks cross the street.  I had to wait for the light to change to
    be escorted across the road by the guard.  Should work the same.  The
    kids should cross with the light as is proper for ordinary pedestrians.
    
    Acton bus drivers constantly jump the lights to turn left in front of
    on coming traffic.  Have never been quick enough to get a bus number to
    report it.  It is reckless and irresponsible to do this in a relatively 
    agile car let alone a lumbering yellow behemoth stuffed with kiddies.  
    
    Brian

    Officer di is back!