CHARLESTON, W.Va. — Less illegal passing incidents are happening when Kanawha County school buses are stopped, according to survey results released Wednesday.
The one-day survey, provided by the National Association of State Directors of Pupil Transportation Services, was conducted this past week.
The county saw a reduction of 15 percent since 2016 and saw a 32 percent reduction from 2015.
There were 61 illegal passes this school year. In 2015, there were 77 passes and 93 in 2014.
“Nine percent of our buses were passed illegally (this year),” Brette Fraley, transportation director for Kanawha County Schools, told MetroNews. “Of the 139 (buses), 13 of the buses were impacted with illegal passes.”
Most of the illegal passes happened in St. Albans and North Charleston — accounting for more than half of the passes.
“The primary area of concern remain the four lanes such as Route 60 in St. Albans and right there on 7th Avenue in North Charleston,” Fraley said.
Kanawha City was a problem area last year, but since then, Fraley said they changed the bus routes to back roads. “We found a significant decline,” he said, with only 2 illegal passes there.
The survey also found most the passes happened in the afternoon hours when students are getting off the bus.
Fraley said the survey results help the community and law enforcement know where the problems are located.
“When you look at the information, and we share it, it gives them an idea of time frame — is it the morning, the afternoon? Acutally, which bus can I follow and see what’s going on,” he said.
Although the county has seen improvement over the years, Fraley said, “We still consider one to be too many.”
To view the survey results, CLICK HERE.