As August gets underway, commercial fleets should begin preparing for a significant change in roadway conditions. As students return to school in the coming weeks, school buses will resume daily routes, pedestrian and bicycle traffic will increase, and residential streets will become more congested during morning drop-off and afternoon dismissal.
For commercial motor vehicle (CMV) operators, these changes create a seasonal increase in route risk. Delivery trucks, tankers, service vehicles, municipal fleets, and other commercial vehicles may suddenly find themselves sharing busy roads with school buses, children, parents, and inexperienced young drivers.
School buses themselves are among the safest forms of transportation for students. According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), children are at greater risk when they are approaching or leaving a school bus, particularly while crossing roadways or moving through the area around a stopped bus.
For fleet operators, back-to-school safety should not be treated as a temporary traffic inconvenience. It is an opportunity to review routes, reinforce defensive driving expectations, and proactively reduce exposure to high-risk areas.
School zones introduce several factors that can challenge even experienced commercial drivers.
Traffic patterns become less predictable. Passenger vehicles may stop suddenly, change lanes without warning, or pull into and out of driveways. School buses make frequent stops. Children may enter crosswalks or roadways unexpectedly. Bicycles, scooters, and pedestrians can appear suddenly from behind parked vehicles.
For a commercial vehicle, the consequences of an unexpected situation can be amplified by vehicle size, weight, blind spots, and stopping distance.
The goal should be simple: identify these risks before the truck enters the area rather than relying on the driver to react after a hazard develops.
One of the most important back-to-school reminders for commercial drivers is knowing how to respond to a stopped school bus.
NHTSA confirms that every state has laws prohibiting motorists from passing a stopped school bus when its red lights are flashing and its stop arm is deployed. However, the specific requirements for traffic approaching from the opposite direction can vary based on the roadway configuration and state law.
Drivers should understand the basic sequence:
Drivers operating across multiple states should not assume the same roadway exceptions apply everywhere. State laws can differ regarding divided highways, medians, and multi-lane roadways.
The safest approach is to treat a stopped school bus as a high-priority hazard and follow the applicable state requirements every time.
NHTSA identifies a 10-foot danger zone around a stopped school bus where children are particularly vulnerable. Students may need to cross in front of the bus, walk alongside it, or move between the bus and surrounding traffic.
Commercial drivers should remember that they may be dealing with multiple layers of limited visibility at once.
A commercial truck has its own blind spots, while the school bus has additional areas where children may be difficult to see. A child can also be hidden by parked vehicles, landscaping, other traffic, or the school bus itself.
This is why drivers should never assume that a clear view of the roadway means the area around the bus is clear.
Slow down, increase following distance, scan continuously, and expect children to move unpredictably.
One of the most effective ways to reduce school zone exposure is to address the problem during dispatch and route planning.
Safety should not depend entirely on a driver recognizing every school along a route. Dispatchers and safety managers can identify schools, bus stops, and recurring congestion points ahead of time and incorporate them into route planning.
NHTSA's school transportation guidance emphasizes the importance of identifying and managing route hazards, including visibility issues, roadway design, and other conditions that can affect safe travel.
School-related congestion typically increases during morning arrival and afternoon dismissal.
Depending on the area, fleets may benefit from identifying recurring peak periods, such as:
These should be treated as planning windows rather than universal school-zone hours. Local schedules vary, and individual schools may have different arrival and dismissal times.
Where practical, consider routing heavy commercial vehicles away from residential streets and school corridors during these periods.
Some fleets cannot completely avoid school areas. Deliveries, maintenance calls, tank pumping, utility work, and other services may require access to neighborhoods near schools.
When possible, adjust service windows so large commercial vehicles are not entering these areas during the busiest arrival and dismissal periods.
A small scheduling adjustment can reduce:
The safest route is often the one that eliminates unnecessary exposure before the vehicle leaves the terminal.
Route planning reduces exposure, but drivers still need specific techniques for navigating changing roadway conditions.
In busy residential and school areas, drivers should actively scan well ahead of the vehicle rather than focusing only on the immediate roadway.
At 20 mph, a vehicle travels approximately 29 feet per second. A 15-second visual lead provides roughly 440 feet of roadway awareness.
That additional visibility gives drivers more time to identify:
The earlier a driver identifies a developing hazard, the more options they have to respond smoothly.
Commercial vehicles need more room to slow and stop than passenger vehicles.
This becomes especially important around school buses and congested intersections. A passenger vehicle may stop suddenly when a child approaches a crosswalk or a bus activates its warning lights.
Following too closely removes the driver's ability to respond gradually.
For tank trucks and other vehicles carrying liquid cargo, drivers should also consider how liquid movement can affect vehicle handling. Liquid surge can shift the vehicle's dynamics during braking and acceleration, making smooth inputs and additional following distance particularly important.
Large commercial vehicles have significant blind spots, particularly around turns and intersections.
Drivers should complete deliberate mirror scans before turning, changing lanes, or moving through pedestrian-heavy areas. The "rock and roll" technique can also help drivers adjust their viewing angle around mirrors and windshield pillars.
Before turning near a school or crosswalk:
Never assume a crosswalk is clear simply because it was clear a few seconds earlier.
School zones are particularly unforgiving of distracted driving.
Federal regulations prohibit CMV drivers from texting while driving and prohibit the use of hand-held mobile telephones while operating a CMV. FMCSA notes that violations can result in civil penalties, driver disqualification, and negative impacts on a carrier's Safety Measurement System results.
The rules are especially important when traffic conditions are changing rapidly.
Drivers should set up navigation before moving, avoid manually interacting with mobile devices while driving, and keep their attention focused on the roadway.
No message, navigation adjustment, or phone call is worth taking your eyes away from a school zone.
Every fleet should reinforce a consistent response to school buses during seasonal safety training.
When yellow or amber lights begin flashing, recognize that the bus is preparing to stop.
Reduce speed and prepare to stop. Do not accelerate in an attempt to pass the bus before it stops.
When the red lights are flashing and the stop arm is extended, bring the commercial vehicle to a complete stop as required by applicable state law.
Give yourself enough space to maintain visibility and avoid creating an additional hazard for students.
Do not treat the stop as an opportunity to look away from the roadway.
Continue scanning the surrounding area for pedestrians, bicycles, children crossing the roadway, and vehicles approaching from other directions.
Remain stopped until the conditions required by applicable state law are met. As a general safety practice, drivers should wait for the red lights to stop, the stop arm to retract, and the bus to begin moving before proceeding.
Always verify that the roadway and crosswalk are clear before accelerating.
Back-to-school safety does not have to rely entirely on observation.
Fleet telematics can provide safety managers with valuable information about how vehicles are operating in high-risk areas. Depending on the system, fleets may be able to monitor speeding, hard braking, acceleration, and other driving behaviors.
Consider reviewing data for recurring patterns such as:
The objective should be prevention, not punishment.
If a driver repeatedly brakes hard near the same school every afternoon, the solution may not be as simple as telling the driver to "be more careful." The route, delivery window, traffic pattern, or dispatch instructions may need to be addressed.
Seasonal risks are an ideal opportunity for short, targeted safety training.
Rather than relying exclusively on an annual defensive driving course, safety managers can use brief toolbox talks, micro-learning, or tailgate training to address the specific conditions drivers are experiencing right now.
Consider covering topics such as:
Short, timely training can reinforce expectations when the information is most relevant.
Training is only one part of an effective safety program. Documentation is equally important.
Keep records of:
A documented process helps demonstrate that the organization is actively identifying and addressing foreseeable roadway risks.
It also gives safety managers a record they can use to evaluate what worked and what should change for the next school year.
Before the school year gets fully underway, safety managers and dispatchers should ask:
Routes
Drivers
Vehicles
Monitoring
Training
It depends on the roadway configuration and applicable state law. Traffic approaching a stopped school bus from behind must stop when the bus's red lights are flashing and the stop arm is deployed. Requirements for traffic approaching from the opposite direction can vary on divided or multi-lane roadways.
Fleet operators should make sure drivers understand the laws in every state where they operate.
Federal regulations prohibit CMV drivers from texting while driving. FMCSA states that penalties can reach $2,750 for drivers and $11,000 for employers who allow or require prohibited texting or hand-held mobile phone use. Multiple violations can also result in driver disqualification.
State laws and additional penalties may also apply.
Liquid surge occurs when liquid cargo moves inside a tank, particularly when the tank is not completely full. During braking or acceleration, that movement can affect vehicle handling and stability.
Tank truck drivers should account for the additional dynamics of liquid cargo by maintaining appropriate following distance and using smooth braking, steering, and acceleration techniques.
Start by mapping schools, bus routes, recurring congestion points, and customer locations near schools. From there, dispatchers can evaluate delivery times and alternative routes.
Fleet telematics and routing technology can also help identify speeding, hard braking, route deviations, and other behaviors that may indicate increased risk.
Back-to-school traffic is predictable even when the individual hazards are not.
School buses will stop. Children will walk and ride bicycles. Parents will stop unexpectedly. Traffic will become congested. Commercial vehicles will continue to operate in the middle of it all.
The strongest fleet safety programs plan for these conditions before they become a problem.
By reviewing routes, adjusting service windows, reinforcing defensive driving practices, eliminating distractions, monitoring telematics data, and providing targeted seasonal training, fleet operators can reduce unnecessary exposure to school zone risks while building a stronger safety culture.
Sentry Road Safety Compliance Training can help your organization keep seasonal safety training simple, trackable, and audit-ready. Our compliance platform makes it easier to deliver targeted training, track completion, and maintain the documentation your safety program needs.
As a new school year begins, make sure your fleet is ready for the roads ahead.