Ohio Rev. Code » Chapter 4511
Ohio Revised Code

Ohio Rev. Code § 4511.75 (2026)

Stopping for stopped school bus

✓ current as of May 2026
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Effective:
September 30, 2025
Latest Legislation:
House Bill 96 - 136th General Assembly
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(A) The driver of a vehicle, streetcar, or trackless trolley upon meeting or overtaking from either direction any school bus stopped for the purpose of receiving or discharging any school child, person attending programs offered by community boards of mental health and county boards of developmental disabilities, or child attending a program offered by a head start agency, shall stop at least ten feet from the front or rear of the school bus and shall not proceed until such school bus resumes motion, or until signaled by the school bus driver to proceed.

It is no defense to a charge under this division that the school bus involved failed to display or be equipped with an automatically extended stop warning sign as required by division (B) of this section.

(B) Every school bus shall be equipped with amber and red visual signals meeting the requirements of section 4511.771 of the Revised Code, and an automatically extended stop warning sign of a type approved by the department of education and workforce, which shall be actuated by the driver of the bus whenever but only whenever the bus is stopped or stopping on the roadway for the purpose of receiving or discharging school children, persons attending programs offered by community boards of mental health and county boards of developmental disabilities, or children attending programs offered by head start agencies. A school bus driver shall not actuate the visual signals or the stop warning sign in designated school bus loading areas where the bus is entirely off the roadway or at school buildings when children or persons attending programs offered by community boards of mental health and county boards of developmental disabilities are loading or unloading at curbside or at buildings when children attending programs offered by head start agencies are loading or unloading at curbside. The visual signals and stop warning sign shall be synchronized or otherwise operated as required by rule of the board.

(C) Where a highway has been divided into four or more traffic lanes, a driver of a vehicle, streetcar, or trackless trolley need not stop for a school bus approaching from the opposite direction which has stopped for the purpose of receiving or discharging any school child, persons attending programs offered by community boards of mental health and county boards of developmental disabilities, or children attending programs offered by head start agencies. The driver of any vehicle, streetcar, or trackless trolley overtaking the school bus shall comply with division (A) of this section.

(D) School buses operating on divided highways or on highways with four or more traffic lanes shall receive and discharge all school children, persons attending programs offered by community boards of mental health and county boards of developmental disabilities, and children attending programs offered by head start agencies on their residence side of the highway.

(E) No school bus driver shall start the driver's bus until after any child, person attending programs offered by community boards of mental health and county boards of developmental disabilities, or child attending a program offered by a head start agency who may have alighted therefrom has reached a place of safety on the child's or person's residence side of the road.

(F)(1) Whoever violates division (A) of this section may be fined an amount not to exceed five hundred dollars. A person who is issued a citation for a violation of division (A) of this section is not permitted to enter a written plea of guilty and waive the person's right to contest the citation in a trial but instead must appear in person in the proper court to answer the charge.

(2) In addition to and independent of any other penalty provided by law, the court or mayor may impose upon an offender who violates this section a class seven suspension of the offender's driver's license, commercial driver's license, temporary instruction permit, probationary license, or nonresident operating privilege from the range specified in division (A)(7) of section 4510.02 of the Revised Code. When a license is suspended under this section, the court or mayor shall cause the offender to deliver the license to the court, and the court or clerk of the court immediately shall forward the license to the registrar of motor vehicles, together with notice of the court's action.

(G) As used in this section:

(1) "Head start agency" has the same meaning as in section 3301.32 of the Revised Code.

(2) "School bus," as used in relation to children who attend a program offered by a head start agency, means a bus that is owned and operated by a head start agency, is equipped with an automatically extended stop warning sign of a type approved by the department, is painted the color and displays the markings described in section 4511.77 of the Revised Code, and is equipped with amber and red visual signals meeting the requirements of section 4511.771 of the Revised Code, irrespective of whether or not the bus has fifteen or more children aboard at any time. "School bus" does not include a van owned and operated by a head start agency, irrespective of its color, lights, or markings, or a multifunction school activity bus.

Last updated July 21, 2025 at 11:30 AM

Notes of Decisions
Cited in 16 cases (1 in the last 5 years), 1984–2024 · leading case: Turner v. Cent. Local Sch. Dist., 706 N.E.2d 1261 (Ohio 1999).
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Turner v. Cent. Local Sch. Dist., 706 N.E.2d 1261 (Ohio 1999). · cites it 17× “Chapter 2744 and reverse the court of appeals’ judgment on this issue.”
City of Middletown v. Campbell, 590 N.E.2d 1301 (Ohio Ct. App. 1990). · cites it 14× “” Further, R.C. 4511.75 is the first of a series of statutes under the caption “school buses.”
Hensley v. Toledo Area Reg'l Transit Auth., 700 N.E.2d 641 (Ohio Ct. App. 1997). · cites it 10× “Specifically, the count alleged that the Board transports approximately forty percent of its school children in its own fleet of yellow school buses which comply with state safety laws, and approximately sixty percent of its school children on TARTA buses which do not comply…”
State v. Knowlton, 2012 Ohio 2350 (Ohio Ct. App. 2012). · cites it 2× “However, another example, R.C. 4511.75, entitled Stopping for school bus; signals, provides that a court may impose a class seven driver’s license suspension on an offender.”
State v. Wright, 2014 Ohio 985 (Ohio Ct. App. 2014). “1989) (noting that R.C. 4511.75 requires vehicles to maintain a "zone of safety" when a school bus is receiving or discharging students mainly because children are unpredictable).”
Midstate Educators Credit Union, Inc. v. Werner, 886 N.E.2d 893 (Ohio Ct. App. 2008). “Nine months later, the trial court granted summary judgment in favor of the defendant.”
Merchants Mut. Ins. v. Baker, 473 N.E.2d 827 (Ohio 1984). “Moreover, the trial court’s determination seems to ignore the fact that appellant’s insured could also be viewed as negligent per se in violating R.C. 4511.75(A). In a case such as this, where reasonable minds could differ as to whose acts or omissions constitute the proximate…”
Joins v. Bonner, 504 N.E.2d 61 (Ohio 1986). “Two such provisions are R.C. 4511.75(A) and (E). Division (A) requires that any driver who meets or overtakes a school bus “from either direction,” when the bus is “stopped for the purpose of receiving or discharging any school child * * * shall stop at least ten feet from the…”
State v. Wolffram, 577 N.E.2d 442 (Ohio Ct. App. 1989). · cites it 10× “Based upon information provided by Cornwell and two other drivers in the vicinity, appellant was subsequently charged with violating R.C. 4511.75, which reads, in part: “(A) The driver of a vehicle, streetcar, or trackless trolley upon meeting or overtaking from either direction…”
State v. Hefflinger, 2017 Ohio 7100 (Ohio Ct. App. 2017). “19(A)(2), a misdemeanor of the first degree, one count of failing to stop for a school bus in violation of R.C. 4511.75(A), a misdemeanor of the fourth degree, and one count of failing to stop in an assured clear distance in violation of R.”
Vill. of Woodmere v. Kelbach, 655 N.E.2d 429 (Ohio Ct. App. 1995). · cites it 8× “38, which is identical with R.C. 4511.75. The facts as found by the municipal judge on the first page of his judgment entry stated: “The facts as presented by the parties are straightforward.”
State v. Wallace, 2024 Ohio 5084 (Ohio Ct. App. 2024). · cites it 3× “33(A), a second-degree misdemeanor; and failing to stop for a school bus signal in violation of R.C. 4511.75(A), an unclassified misdemeanor.”
Show all 16 citing cases →
— Ohio Rev. Code § 4511.75(A) — 5 cases
Merchants Mut. Ins. v. Baker, 473 N.E.2d 827 (Ohio 1984). “Moreover, the trial court’s determination seems to ignore the fact that appellant’s insured could also be viewed as negligent per se in violating R.C. 4511.75(A). In a case such as this, where reasonable minds could differ as to whose acts or omissions constitute the proximate…”
Joins v. Bonner, 504 N.E.2d 61 (Ohio 1986). “Two such provisions are R.C. 4511.75(A) and (E). Division (A) requires that any driver who meets or overtakes a school bus “from either direction,” when the bus is “stopped for the purpose of receiving or discharging any school child * * * shall stop at least ten feet from the…”
State v. Hefflinger, 2017 Ohio 7100 (Ohio Ct. App. 2017). “19(A)(2), a misdemeanor of the first degree, one count of failing to stop for a school bus in violation of R.C. 4511.75(A), a misdemeanor of the fourth degree, and one count of failing to stop in an assured clear distance in violation of R.”
State v. Wallace, 2024 Ohio 5084 (Ohio Ct. App. 2024). “33(A), a second-degree misdemeanor; and failing to stop for a school bus signal in violation of R.C. 4511.75(A), an unclassified misdemeanor.”
State v. Hoyt, 2016 Ohio 642 (Ohio Ct. App. 2016).
— Ohio Rev. Code § 4511.75(B) — 1 case
Hensley v. Toledo Area Reg'l Transit Auth., 700 N.E.2d 641 (Ohio Ct. App. 1997). “Specifically, the count alleged that the Board transports approximately forty percent of its school children in its own fleet of yellow school buses which comply with state safety laws, and approximately sixty percent of its school children on TARTA buses which do not comply…”
— Ohio Rev. Code § 4511.75(C) — 1 case
Vill. of Woodmere v. Kelbach, 655 N.E.2d 429 (Ohio Ct. App. 1995). “38, which is identical with R.C. 4511.75. The facts as found by the municipal judge on the first page of his judgment entry stated: “The facts as presented by the parties are straightforward.”
— Ohio Rev. Code § 4511.75(D) — 2 cases
Hensley v. Toledo Area Reg'l Transit Auth., 700 N.E.2d 641 (Ohio Ct. App. 1997). “Specifically, the count alleged that the Board transports approximately forty percent of its school children in its own fleet of yellow school buses which comply with state safety laws, and approximately sixty percent of its school children on TARTA buses which do not comply…”
Vill. of Woodmere v. Kelbach, 655 N.E.2d 429 (Ohio Ct. App. 1995). “38, which is identical with R.C. 4511.75. The facts as found by the municipal judge on the first page of his judgment entry stated: “The facts as presented by the parties are straightforward.”
— Ohio Rev. Code § 4511.75(E) — 5 cases
Turner v. Cent. Local Sch. Dist., 706 N.E.2d 1261 (Ohio 1999). “Chapter 2744 and reverse the court of appeals’ judgment on this issue.”
City of Middletown v. Campbell, 590 N.E.2d 1301 (Ohio Ct. App. 1990). “” Further, R.C. 4511.75 is the first of a series of statutes under the caption “school buses.”
Midstate Educators Credit Union, Inc. v. Werner, 886 N.E.2d 893 (Ohio Ct. App. 2008). “Nine months later, the trial court granted summary judgment in favor of the defendant.”
Sallee v. Watts, 2014 Ohio 717 (Ohio Ct. App. 2014).
Hensley v. Toledo Area Reg'l Transit Auth., 700 N.E.2d 641 (Ohio Ct. App. 1997). “Specifically, the count alleged that the Board transports approximately forty percent of its school children in its own fleet of yellow school buses which comply with state safety laws, and approximately sixty percent of its school children on TARTA buses which do not comply…”
— Ohio Rev. Code § 4511.75(F)(2) — 3 cases
State v. Knowlton, 2012 Ohio 2350 (Ohio Ct. App. 2012). “However, another example, R.C. 4511.75, entitled Stopping for school bus; signals, provides that a court may impose a class seven driver’s license suspension on an offender.”
State v. Sellers, 2017 Ohio 4020 (Ohio Ct. App. 2017).
State v. Ledley, 2010 Ohio 1260 (Ohio Ct. App. 2010).
Annotations are extracted automatically from the opinions in the Syfert caselaw corpus and ranked by authority, recency, and treatment. Dots show Syfertize treatment of the citing case itself.