Rhode Island driving lesson · Sharing the Road Safely
School Buses
A 2-minute lesson from the Rhode Island course. Read the rules and examples, follow the handbook page references, and check your understanding before you move on.
Flashing red lights on a school bus mean children are getting on or off. Rhode Island makes drivers from BOTH directions stop, and the rule applies well beyond public highways.
Know the rule
When a school bus's red lights are flashing, motorists approaching from either direction must come to a full stop and stay stopped until the red lights stop flashing.
A school bus stops across a four-lane road with only painted lines down the middle and flashes its red lights. That's not a divided highway, so you must stop, even though the bus is on the other side.
Check your understanding
Read the question, decide on an answer, then open it to check the explanation. These are Roadwise study questions based on the source handbook.
When a school bus has its red lights flashing, what must approaching drivers do, in general?
Stop from both directions until the lights stop flashing
Only drivers approaching from behind must stop
Slow down but may continue past carefully
Stop only if children are visible outside
Answer: Stop from both directions until the lights stop flashing
Motorists approaching from either direction must stop and remain stopped until the bus's red lights no longer flash.
