A local school bus driver pointed out to the Tribune Editorial Board that in the convictions printed in the Tribune that some people guilty of failing to stop for school buses when the stop arm is extended have received some low fines.

That driver had us look in the Minnesota Commercial Driver’s Manual, where it states: “A driver who doesn’t stop for a school bus as required is guilty of a misdemeanor punishable by a fine of not less than $300.”

A driver’s manual is not law, so we looked up the school bus statute in state law. It reads: “A person who fails to stop a vehicle or to keep it stopped, as required in subdivision 1, or who violates subdivision 1a, is guilty of a misdemeanor punishable by a fine of not less than $300.”

There it is, in black and white.

We urge judges and prosecutors to give no leniency when it comes to stop-arm violations for school buses.

And we urge drivers to make sure they stop for the stop arms. The bus driver who visited the Tribune this week said most motorists who violate the stop arm are chatting on their cell phones, not paying much attention to the world around them.

Naughty, naughty.

Please be careful on the streets and roads. Even the calm streets of Albert Lea can grow busy. Even the rural roads can be deadly.