2013 Connecticut General Statutes
Title 14 - Motor Vehicles. Use of the Highway By Vehicles. Gasoline
Chapter 248 - Vehicle Highway Use
Section 14-279 - Vehicles to stop for school bus. Penalties. Written warning or summons.

(a) The operator of any vehicle, motor vehicle, or authorized emergency vehicle, as defined in section 14-1, shall immediately bring such vehicle to a stop not less than ten feet from the front when approaching and not less than ten feet from the rear when overtaking or following any registered school bus on any highway or private road or in any parking area or on any school property when such bus is displaying flashing red signal lights, except at the specific direction of a traffic officer. Vehicles so stopped for a school bus shall not proceed until such bus no longer displays flashing red signal lights. At the intersection of two or more highways vehicular turns toward a school bus receiving or discharging passengers are prohibited. The operator of a vehicle upon a highway with separate roadways need not stop upon meeting or passing a school bus which is on a different roadway.

(b) Any person who violates any provision of subsection (a) of this section shall be fined four hundred fifty dollars for the first offense and for each subsequent offense, not less than five hundred dollars nor more than one thousand dollars or imprisoned not more than thirty days or both.

(c) Upon receipt of a written report from any school bus operator or an evidence file from a live digital video school bus violation detection monitoring system, as defined in section 14-279a, specifying the license plate number, color and type of any vehicle observed by such operator or recorded by a camera affixed to such school bus violating any provision of subsection (a) of this section and the date, approximate time and location of such violation, a police officer shall issue a written warning or a summons to the owner of any such vehicle. A photographic or digital still or video image that clearly shows the license plate number of a vehicle violating any provision of subsection (a) of this section shall be sufficient proof of the identity of such vehicle for purposes of subsection (b) of section 14-107.

(1955, S. 1323d; February, 1965, P.A. 574, S. 21; 1967, P.A. 380; P.A. 80-245; P.A. 85-71; P.A. 86-155; P.A. 01-192, S. 3; P.A. 04-217, S. 29; P.A. 11-255, S. 1.)

History: 1965 act deleted “stop signal” as alternative to signal lights on school buses; 1967 act prohibited vehicle’s moving until bus no longer displays “flashing” lights; P.A. 80-245 added Subsec. (b) re penalties for violation of provisions; P.A. 85-71 amended Subsec. (a) to include reference to flashing “red” signal lights and added Subsec. (c), providing for the issuance of a written warning to the owner of a vehicle violating Subsec. (a) upon receipt of a written report; P.A. 86-155 amended Subsec. (a) to require vehicle operator to stop when overtaking or following a school bus on any highway, private road or in any parking area or on school property when bus is displaying flashing red lights, and amended Subsec. (c) to eliminate reference to “other person eighteen years of age or older” making written report and to require police officer to issue written warning or summons upon receipt of written report; P.A. 01-192 amended Subsec. (a) by adding provision re authorized emergency vehicle, as defined in Sec. 14-1(a)(4) and making a technical change for the purpose of gender neutrality (Revisor’s note: In Subsec. (a), “subsection (a) of” was added editorially by the Revisors before “section 14-1” for accuracy); P.A. 04-217 amended Subsec. (a) to eliminate reference to Sec. 14-1(a)(4), effective January 1, 2005; P.A. 11-255 amended Subsec. (b) to replace minimum $100 and maximum $500 fine for first offense with $450 fine, and amended Subsec. (c) to require issuance of warning or summons upon receipt of evidence file from live digital video school bus violation detection monitoring system, to add provision re vehicle observed by operator or recorded by camera and to add provision re criteria for sufficient proof for purposes of Sec. 14-107(b), effective July 1, 2001.

See Sec. 14-111g re operator’s retraining program.

State is not limited to proving a vehicle is a registered school bus by a certified copy of registration prepared by commissioner; it could prove this element by such other evidence as it sees fit. 4 Conn. Cir. Ct. 5.