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Committee hears enforcement options for school-bus passing, ferry outage complaints and no update yet on bridge study
Summary
VDOT told the county that passing a stopped school bus is a state driving offense and recommended reporting violations to the sheriff; deputies have made intermittent enforcement. Residents reported Pocahontas ferry outages causing backups; staff said they have no recent update on the state study of a proposed bridge.
County staff read VDOT's guidance about school-bus passing in response to constituent concerns: VDOT said the prohibition on passing a stopped school bus is a state driving violation and that reporting such incidents to the sheriff’s department is the appropriate enforcement route. "VDOT does not utilize school bus stop ahead warning signs...they will do a sight distance review on Route 10 southbound if requested," staff (S2) read to the committee.
Sheriff/Deputy (S7) told the committee the county secured an increase of 100 hours in the DMV highway-safety grant (raising the county to 400 selective-enforcement hours) to support traffic enforcement including speed and seatbelt checks and said deputies have been stationed near the problematic Bacons Castle school-bus stop on multiple occasions.
Residents raised concerns about prolonged outages of the Pocahontas ferry, saying backups at the ferry and on the Williamsburg side have been severe during dock downtime. A board member asked about the state study of a proposed bridge; county staff (S?) said they had not received a recent status update.
Why it matters: enforcement hours and VDOT sight-distance reviews affect on-the-ground safety for children boarding and leaving school buses; ferry outages affect commuting and may increase localized unsafe driving behaviors as motorists try to beat backups.
Next steps: staff offered to request a VDOT sight-distance review for the Route 10 location, and the sheriff’s office will continue enforcement patrols under the expanded DMV grant hours. Staff will check on the status of any state bridge study and report back.
