BARRHEAD - The town of Barrhead will not have its own school bus fly-by bylaw in the foreseeable future.
Coun Ty Assaf asked administration to add the topic to the Jan. 28 council meeting at the last minute.
Assaf first suggested that the municipality draft a school bus fly-by bylaw with a financial penalty more than triple that of the provincial legislation during the Jan. 14 council meeting following a Pembina Hills School Division (PHSD) trustee delegation. The penalty he suggested was $1,500.
The trustees told councillors they plan to have the Alberta School Boards Association (ASBA) pressure the provincial government to enact additional measures to combat school bus fly-bys, including increasing the fine and the number of licence demerit points. The penalty for passing a stopped school bus with its red lights flashing is $567 and six demerit points.
"Since then, I've thought about it some more, and I really want administration to do some research and draft a bylaw to help stop these fly-bys before something serious happens."
Coun. Rod Klumph said he is not sure that was the answer, suggesting a municipal bylaw would be redundant.
"I have no problem with administration looking into it, but I believe the penalties are already there," he said.
Mayor Dave McKenzie agreed with Klumph, saying that three Alberta Traffic Safety Act statutes already address school bus fly-bys and that a hefty penalty is already in place.
"The apprehension and prosecution of violators is probably the key [in stopping] this," he said.
McKenzie also said that while the problem of school bus fly-bys is serious, it tends to occur outside the town's borders on county roads and provincial highways.
He said school bus pickups are at designated stops within the municipality and are intended for younger students.
"There are signs in town where the bus stops are where the kids collect in larger groups. The only time the [school bus red lights come on is when the doors open up for about 30 seconds, and the kids pile on, then they're gone," McKenzie said.
He said that after retiring from the RCMP, he worked as a traffic safety consultant and collaborated with school divisions to create school bus safety education programs and campaigns.
"You have this big yellow bus with a stop sign that pops out from the side, alternating red lights, signs all over the back of the bus telling drivers that you have to stop. It shouldn't be a mystery to drivers that this is a violation," he said, reiterating that enforcement of the current law was the key.
Assaf realized fly-bys happen more often in the county, but the PHSD delegation stated that out of the 85 fly-bys that occurred in 2023-2024, a few did happen within the town.
In an interview with the Barrhead Leader in May 2024, PHSD transportation director Shantelle Haitel said a fly-by trouble spot was the bus stop at Highway 18 at the intersection of 49th Street and 61st Avenue near the Neighbourhood Inn.
"Put something in place, slap these guys with a hefty fine, so they don't think about passing [a school bus with flashing lights] again," Assaf said. "What hits us most is not the six demerits, but the fine."
McKenzie said it was more than just the fine and the demerits, adding that the provincial legislation had more bite to it because a conviction would increase a person's insurance.
"A six-demerit violation on a driver's abstract will increase a person's auto insurance by 50 per cent for the next two years. A bylaw won't do that," he said.
He then reiterated that he believed enforcement was the key to stopping fly-bys.
"School bus stops are on such a regulated schedule. They know exactly where they will be within a minute at a particular spot to pick up or drop off these kids and what time these violators are going by," he said. "I often think, what more does enforcement need."
Coun. Don Smith said he believed education was foremost.
"Giving someone a $1,000 or $1,500 fine may deter someone for a week or so, then something will happen," he said. "It's a huge issue, one bigger than the municipality, and I think [the law and penalites] should be the same across the province to send a clear message."
Chief administrative officer Collin Steffes asked the municipality's senior leadership team for input in preparation for this discussion.
Community peace officer (CPO) Brandon Johnson said that the council needs to consider the cost of prosecution if it creates a bylaw.
"It would have to be something the municipality would have to bear," Steffes said.
McKenzie said later in the meeting that the last time he inquired, the cost to have a provincial prosecutor prosecute a bylaw case was $1,500.
Steffes said the leadership team agreed with McKenzie that it should be relatively easy to police and suggested they meet with PHSD and the RCMP to develop an enforcement strategy.
"It also seems, from a layman's observation, that some of the stops while at convenient locations for pickup, but from a traffic interaction perspective, are not the best," he said.
Smith asked if the municipality enacted a fly-by bylaw, which a CPO or RCMP member would use, saying a driver would not get two tickets for the same offence.
McKenzie said it would be up to the officer but suggested they would choose the provincial statute.
"It is more defined, and the courts are used to dealing with it and here are just more teeth in the provincial legislation," he said. "The tools [for enforcing and combating school bus fly-bys] are there; we just need a better strategy."
Barry Kerton, TownandCountryToday.com
