'Pretty frustrating': Summerside police get more complaints about drivers passing school buses

Summerside police have charged five more people in the last two months for passing school buses that have their red stop lights flashing.

That brings the number of people charged to about a dozenin Summerside since the beginning of the school year, said Sgt. Jason Blacquiere.

"It's pretty frustrating," he said. "It's completely avoidable. We've been lucky so far that nobody's been injured, but the luck can't hold out forever."

Police said they received 15 complaints of vehicles failing to stop for school buses between Oct. 23 and Dec. 4. Many have not led to charges because police have not positively identifiedthe vehicles.

That's why Blacquiere is encouraging anyone who sees a motorist passing a school bus with its lights flashing to take note of the licence plates and vehicle description, and provide the information.

Some of them, surprisingly enough, just say they didn't see the bus and I'm not sure how that's possible if you're paying attention. Sgt. Jason Blacquiere

"Oftentimes there's a lot going on on the bus so it's a lot to ask of the bus driver to be able to get a good description of the vehicle and try and get a licence plate number," he said.

"So sometimes they can only provide us with part of that information."

Police said they are taking a zero tolerance approach for drivers who pass schoolbuses whose lights are flashing.Drivers convicted of the offence face a fine of up to $5,000 and lose their licence for three months.

"Some of them, surprisingly enough, just say they didn't see the bus and I'm not sure how that's possible if you're paying attention," Blacquiere said.

"They're big vehicles, they are bright, they have flashing lights, so I don't know how that can be."

More P.E.I. news