The Winnebago County Sheriff's Office released a video Thursday of a near collision between a car and a stopped school bus that took place just outside Oshkosh on Jan. 6th, according to the Sheriff's Office.
Darin Rice is a Lieutenant with the Winnebago County Sheriff's Office, or WCSO. He says the crash can be "attributed to poor road conditions," but still serves as a reminder of the importance of following bus laws.
The child in the incident was not physically hurt, according to the WCSO.
“Once a bus is stopped, vehicles need to stop a minimum of 20 feet behind it when the lights are activated…" he said
"...[O]ncoming traffic also needs to stop, unless you are on a physically divided roadway.”
Rice says these laws are important to protect school-aged children.
According to Rice, the bus involved in the incident belongs to Kobussen Buses, Ltd., and Kobussen Vice President Dan Kobussen says he's been seeing more and more incidents of drivers speeding past stopped buses in recent years.
“If you go back 10-15 years, it didn’t happen at all…" he said
"[N]ow it’s just escalating beyond belief.”
Kobussen says the best way to keep safe around buses, is to give them the room they need on the road.
“Just stay away from the bus…" said Kobussen, "...the bus is full of students, however you tangle with that bus, it’s not going to come out well."
The Sheriff's Department said they have identified the driver of the car in the video, and issued a citation for violating school bus restrictions.
