High Prairie School Division bus driver Jodee Hawley is urging all motorists to come to a complete stop when approaching school buses with their red lights activated on local roads and highways. The plea comes less than two weeks after Hawley’s bus narrowly missed being struck by two trucks while she was picking up a student along Highway 2 north of Donnelly Corner.

A routine stop to pick up a local student proved to be anything but routine on the morning of Nov. 13 when a High Prairie School Division 48 bus driver narrowly missed being struck head-on by two gravel truck-sized vehicles. Jodee Hawley, a bus driver with two years of experience, says she was terrified and deeply concerned about the safety of students on her bus after the early morning close call, which occurred just before 8 a.m. on Highway 2 between Range Road 784 and 790. Hawley says the drama surrounding the near miss unfolded as she was in the process of picking up a student from a residence along the highway. The bus driver was stopped in the southbound lane with the red lights of her bus activated when, in the blink of an eye, the two trucks veered directly into her path after passing a group of four vehicles stopped in the northbound lane. “It all happened so fast,” an emotionally shaken Hawley tells the Express. “One moment I was watching the student go past me and head to their seat and the next second I’m staring at two sets of headlights bearing down on me. The first thought that entered my mind was these guys are going to hit me head-on.” Recognizing what was in front of him at the last second, the driver of the first truck hit the brakes and swerved onto the southbound shoulder, coming to rest within mere inches of the bus door. The second driver, meanwhile, did the same thing, eventually coming to a complete stop near the front of the bus on the centre line of the highway. “I was really surprised neither of the drivers hit me. It was way too close for comfort,” Hawley explains, adding that “I honestly don’t think I could have opened my door even if I wanted to.” The shaken bus driver exchanged glances with both truck drivers before they quickly resumed their course down the highway without so much as an explanation or apology. Hawley, who was thinking of the safety of students at the time admits she never had enough time to record the license plate numbers of the two trucks. She did, however, notify the McLennan RCMP detachment and give a description of the two trucks prior to reporting the incident to the school division’s transportation department later that morning. She says the recent incident reinforces the need for increased awareness and education among motorists about the inherent risks and dangers of passing a school bus while its red are activated. “School bus drivers are carrying the most precious cargo of all – our children – and that should mean something to motorists,” says Hawley. “I don’t know if it’s driver inattention or a lack of understanding, but there just doesn’t seem to be any respect among drivers out there that red means stop.” Hawley and other bus drivers remind motorists to be on the lookout for school buses on rural roads and highways during the early morning and mid-afternoon hours when students are being picked up and dropped off. The Alberta Traffic Safety Act, stipulates that any vehicle approaching from the rear or front must come to a complete stop before it reaches a school bus with its red lights activated. The driver of the vehicle is not permitted to proceed past the school bus until the bus driver disengages the red lights and stop sign. The fine for passing a school bus with its red lights activated is $345 in addition to the loss of six demerit points on your driver’s license. Alternating flashing amber lights, meanwhile, indicate a bus is slowing down and preparing to stop.