JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – Roads will be crowded Monday as schools reopen in Duval, Baker, Bradford and Flagler counties. Duval County officials urge caution due to the thousands of extra vehicles that will head for Jacksonville's public schools, including 850 school buses.
Officials urge students and drivers to be careful because of all the extra traffic and remind the drivers of the laws of of operating around those buses and schools.
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Drivers in both directions are required to stop for a school bus has its stop lights on. although if there's a median dividing the highway, oncoming traffic is allowed to pass.
Drivers need to slow down -- usually to 15 mph -- in marked school zones and pay extra attention around bus stops.
Paul Soares, Duval County schools' assistant superintendent of operations, is making sure students are safe while waiting for or riding the buses.
"First there is our training that occurs. We post school bus rules on all the buses," Soares said.
Bus drivers are trained in how to speak to students to make sure they listen and behave.
"Instead of saying, 'Don't do this,' drivers are going to say, 'Please remain in your seats,' 'please talk quietly,'" Soares said.
They are going to ask students to do things verses telling them not to do things. It's a change to the approach.
If a student's behavior is out of control, the driver will pull over to the side of the road and call dispatch for help so they can focus their attention on the child misbehaving.
"They can call another bus, another additional monitor to come out there," Soares said. "In extreme cases, you can call for police. It just depends on how serious the case is, but it rarely, rarely happens."
District leaders said in addition to more of an emphasis on being positive and keeping things under control. there will be additional bus monitors this year.
Parents also play a big part of keeping students safe. They need to make sure their children don't run out into the street after a bus is stopped. And if a student drops something near the bus, they need to let the bus driver know in case they don't see the child.
School leaders also want parents to speak to their child about stranger danger, and to find a trusted adult if a stranger tries to talk to them or tries to pick them up.