A person is guilty of reckless driving who fails to stop, when
approaching from any direction, any school bus which is stopped on any highway,
private road or school driveway for the purpose of taking on or discharging
children, the elderly, or mentally or physically handicapped persons, and to
remain stopped until all the persons are clear of the highway, private road or
school driveway and the bus is put in motion. The driver of a vehicle, however,
need n
ot stop when approaching a school bus if the school bus is stopped on the
other roadway of a divided highway, on an access road, or on a driveway when
the other roadway, access road, or driveway is separated from the roadway on
which he is driving by a physical barrier or an unpaved area. The driver of a
vehicle also need not stop when approaching a school bus which is loading or
discharging passengers from or onto property immediately adjacent to a school
if the driver is directed by a law-enforcement officer or other duly authorized
uniformed school crossing guard to pass the school bus. This section shall
apply to school buses which are equipped with warning devices prescribed in §
46.2-1090 and are painted yellow with the words "School Bus" in black
letters at least eight inches high on the front and rear thereof. Only school
buses which are painted yellow and equipped with the required lettering and
warning devices shall be identified as school buses.
The testimony of the school bus driver, the supervisor of school buses or
a law-enforcement officer that the vehicle was yellow, conspicuously marked as
a school bus, and equipped with warning devices as prescribed in § 46.2-1090 is
prima facie evidence that the vehicle is a school bus.