Near Miss When Commercial Van Reportedly Passes Stopped School Bus

JEFFERSON TOWNSHIP, Pa. — State police are investigating an incident last week in which a van is shown on video apparently passing a school bus illegally just before two students cross in front of it, Trib Live reports.

Video from cameras on Justin Castilyn’s house across the street from where the incident took place shows a 5-year-old boy and a 7-year-old girl (Castilyn’s stepchildren) crossing in front of the bus after a commercial van passes it, according to the newspaper. The video shows that the school bus was stopped and had its flashing lights on at the time. The students were not hurt, John Risch, a dispatch manager for bus contractor W.L. Roenigk, told Trib Live.

Risch added that the bus was not equipped with cameras. South Butler County School District spokeswoman Jenny Webb told the newspaper that school bus cameras were not being considered before this incident, but that that will be “part of the discussion moving forward.” Risch also told Trib Live that illegally passing school buses is “a daily occurrence” in the area, that people no longer pay attention to stopped school buses, and that it is fortunate that the incident was captured on video.

Castilyn noted that the bus driver honked his horn and stopping the students from possibly being hit by the van.

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