The crossing arm can be seen in use. Note the presence of the rotated yellow bar on the front bumper.
A crossing arm is a safety device intended to protect children from being struck while crossing in front of a school bus. Typically, school bus crossing arms are wire or plastic devices which extend from the front bumper on the right side of the bus when the door is open for loading/unloading and form a barrier. The devices force children, who need to cross the road, to stand several feet in front of the bus itself before they can begin to cross the road. This ensures that the bus driver can see them as they cross, avoiding a common blind spot immediately in front of the bus, closest to the bumper. The crossing arm retracts flush against the bumper while not activated, such as when the bus is in motion.
Regulatory history
Unlike traffic warning lights and many other safety-related features typically found on school buses in the United States, crossing arms are not required by the Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards (FMVSS) for School Buses. Regulations for equipment and use vary widely on a state-by-state basis. In some places, they are optional at the discretion of a local school district or school bus contractor.[citation needed]
The 1990 death of six-year-old Elizabeth "Betsy" Anderson, in Washington State, led to the installation of school bus crossing arms, also referred to as "Betsy Bars" or "Betsy Gates" on all Washington state school buses by 1992.[citation needed] The crossing arms, when extended, require students to cross at least 5 feet (1.5m) in front of the bus.
In Manitoba, Canada, provincial school buses have been required to have an extendable safety arm mounted on the bus since a seven-year-old boy died in 1996 in St. Norbert after getting off his school bus.[citation needed]
An intersection or an at-grade junction is a junction where two or more roads converge, diverge, meet or cross at the same height, as opposed to an interchange, which uses bridges or tunnels to separate different roads. Major intersections are often delineated by gores and may be classified by road segments, traffic controls and lane design.
A pedestrian crossing is a place designated for pedestrians to cross a road, street or avenue. The term "pedestrian crossing" is also used in the Vienna and Geneva Conventions, both of which pertain to road signs and road traffic.
Traffic lights, traffic signals, or stoplights – also known as robots in South Africa, Zambia, and Namibia – are signaling devices positioned at road intersections, pedestrian crossings, and other locations in order to control the flow of traffic.
A bicycle brake reduces the speed of a bicycle or prevents the wheels from moving. The two main types are: rim brakes and disc brakes. Drum brakes are less common on bicycles.
A school bus is any type of bus owned, leased, contracted to, or operated by a school or school district. It is regularly used to transport students to and from school or school-related activities, but not including a charter bus or transit bus. Various configurations of school buses are used worldwide; the most iconic examples are the yellow school buses of the United States which are also found in other parts of the world.
A parking space, parking place or parking spot is a location that is designated for parking, either paved or unpaved. It can be in a parking garage, in a parking lot or on a city street. The space may be delineated by road surface markings. The automobile fits inside the space, either by parallel parking, perpendicular parking or angled parking.
Standards for Interstate Highways in the United States are defined by the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials (AASHTO) in the publication A Policy on Design Standards: Interstate System. For a certain highway to be considered an Interstate Highway, it must meet these construction requirements or obtain a waiver from the Federal Highway Administration.
A rear-view mirror is a, usually flat, mirror in automobiles and other vehicles, designed to allow the driver to see rearward through the vehicle's rear window.
Road surface marking is any kind of device or material that is used on a road surface in order to convey official information; they are commonly placed with road marking machines. They can also be applied in other facilities used by vehicles to mark parking spaces or designate areas for other uses. In some countries and areas, road markings are conceived as horizontal traffic signs, as opposed to vertical traffic signs placed on posts.
The 1995 Fox River Grove bus–train collision was a grade crossing collision that killed seven students riding aboard a school bus in Fox River Grove, Illinois, on the morning of October 25, 1995. The school bus, driven by a substitute driver, was stopped at a traffic light with the rearmost portion extending onto a portion of the railroad tracks when it was struck by a Metra Union Pacific Northwest Line train, train 624 en route to Chicago.
A motor vehicle has lighting and signaling devices mounted to or integrated into its front, rear, sides, and, in some cases, top. Various devices have the dual function of illuminating the road ahead for the driver, and making the vehicle visible to others, with indications to them of turning, slowing or stopping, etc., with lights also indicating the size of some large vehicles.
A crossing guard, lollipop man/lady, or school road patrol is a traffic management personnel who is normally stationed on busy roadways to aid pedestrians. Often associated with elementary school children, crossing guards stop the flow of traffic so pedestrians may cross an intersection.
A tow hitch is a device attached to the chassis of a vehicle for towing, or a towbar to an aircraft nose gear. It can take the form of a tow ball to allow swiveling and articulation of a trailer, or a tow pin, or a tow hook with a trailer loop, often used for large or agricultural vehicles where slack in the pivot pin allows similar movements. Another category is the towing pintle used on military vehicles worldwide.
A bullbar or push bumper is a device installed on the front of a vehicle to protect its front from collisions, whether an accidental collision with a large animal in rural roads, or an intentional collision by police with another vehicle. They vary considerably in size and form, and are normally composed of welded steel or aluminium tubing, or, more recently, moulded polycarbonate and polyethylene materials. The "bull" in the name refers to cattle, which in rural areas sometimes roam onto rural roads and highways.
School bus stop laws are laws dictating what a motorist must do in the vicinity of a bus stop being used by a school bus or other bus, coach or minibus providing school transport.
Inflatable armbands, usually referred to as simply armbands, water wings, swimmies, or floaties, are swim aids designed to help a wearer float in water and learn to swim.
Traffic signal preemption is a system that allows an operator to override the normal operation of traffic lights. The most common use of these systems manipulates traffic signals in the path of an emergency vehicle, halting conflicting traffic and allowing the emergency vehicle right-of-way, thereby reducing response times and enhancing traffic safety. Signal preemption can also be used on tram, light-rail and bus rapid transit systems, to allow public transportation priority access through intersections, and by railroad systems at crossings to prevent collisions.
The geometric design of roads is the branch of highway engineering concerned with the positioning of the physical elements of the roadway according to standards and constraints. The basic objectives in geometric design are to optimize efficiency and safety while minimizing cost and environmental damage. Geometric design also affects an emerging fifth objective called "livability", which is defined as designing roads to foster broader community goals, including providing access to employment, schools, businesses and residences, accommodate a range of travel modes such as walking, bicycling, transit, and automobiles, and minimizing fuel use, emissions and environmental damage.
Terminology related to road transport—the transport of passengers or goods on paved routes between places—is diverse, with variation between dialects of English. There may also be regional differences within a single country, and some terms differ based on the side of the road traffic drives on. This glossary is an alphabetical listing of road transport terms.
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