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Illinois State Police reminds
motorists about school bus and school zone safety
[August 12, 2025]
SPRINGFIELD – The Illinois
State Police (ISP) is reminding motorists about school zone speed
laws and sharing the road safely with buses as schools around the
state prepare to open their doors for the new academic year.
ISP reminds motorists they are required to slow down in school
zones. Posted school zones have a speed limit of 20 miles per hour
and are in effect from 7 a.m. to 4 p.m. on school days when children
are present. Driving while talking or texting on a hand-held
cellular device is strictly prohibited and fines are increased
within a school zone.
Adults are encouraged to promote safe walking habits with their
children, including using sidewalks, crossing the street at
designated crosswalks, and not walking in-between cars.
The majority of students
transported by bus to or from school are injured or killed while
outside the bus. Most children injured in the area around the bus,
often called the “danger zone,” are struck by motorists who fail to
stop for the flashing red lights and extended stop arm.
Motorists approaching a stopped school bus with its visual signals
activated, lights and extended stop sign, must stop their vehicle at
least 20 feet before reaching the school bus. When a school bus
stops on a two-lane roadway and uses its visual signals, vehicles in
both directions must stop until the school bus turns off its visual
signals. When the school bus stops and uses its visual signals on a
one-way roadway, regardless of the number of lanes of traffic, all
traffic must stop. When the school bus stops on a four or
more-lane roadway with at least two lanes of traffic traveling in
the opposite direction, only those traveling in the same direction
as the school bus must stop.
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State law requires
school buses to stop for railroad crossings. If you are
approaching a stopped school bus at a railroad crossing from the
opposite direction, you may proceed past with caution. If you
are approaching from the rear, in the same direction as the bus,
and are within 100 feet from the railroad crossing, the law
prohibits driving over the center line to pass the bus.
A first-time violation for failing to stop for a school bus
unloading/loading while their lights are activated and stop arm
extended can result in a mandatory $300 fine and a three-month
suspension of driving privileges. For additional information
concerning the safe interaction with school buses in traffic,
visit the ISP website
Traffic Safety Brochures page, where you can find the
School Bus Safety Brochure.
[Text received from Illinois State
Police]
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