WEIRTON — As the school year begins, the Weirton Police Department has issued a reminder for drivers to use extra caution and watch for students walking to school or waiting at their bus stops.

In Brooke County, students reported to school for their first day Thursday, with youth in Hancock County beginning their year today.

Additionally, Weirton Police Chief Charlie Kush notes it is a violation of West Virginia code to pass a school bus, in either direction, when they are stopped to pick up or drop off students.

“This includes every street in the city of Weirton as well as Main Street, Cove Road and Pennsylvania Avenue,” Kush said. “Unless there is a physical barrier separating the lanes of travel, you must stop for school buses when their warning lights are activated.”

Such regulations can be found under West Virginia Code 17C-12-7, which notes, in part: “The driver of a vehicle, upon meeting or overtaking from either direction any school bus which has stopped for the purpose of receiving or discharging any school children, shall stop the vehicle before reaching the school bus when there is in operation on the school bus flashing warning signal lights, as referred to in §17C-12-8 of this code, and the driver may not proceed until the school bus resumes motion, or is signaled by the school bus driver to proceed or the visual signals are no longer actuated. This section applies wherever the school bus is receiving or discharging children including, but not limited to, any street, highway, parking lot, private road, or driveway: Provided, That the driver of a vehicle upon a controlled access highway need not stop upon meeting or passing a school bus which is on a different roadway or adjacent to the highway and where pedestrians are not permitted to cross the roadway.”

The Weirton Police Department plans to provide extra patrols in the area of bus stops in the city, with speed patrols conducted at school zone areas where speed limits are reduced to 15 miles per hour.

The penalty of passing a stopped bus is a fine of between $500 and $2,000, the possibility of six months in prison, and a mandatory 60-day driver’s license suspension. Violation of Code 17C-6-1 – governing speeding in school zones – will result in a fine of between $100 and $500 for a first offense.