Summer vacation is over for students in Minot and area schools, and they’re heading back to their classrooms.

Many students rely on school buses to bring them to school or bring them home.

If you are a driver, the U.S. Department of Transportation offers a few simple rules:

Yellow flashing lights on a school bus mean slow down – don’t speed up – because the bus is preparing to stop. Most likely there are students waiting to get on the bus or parents waiting nearby to pick up children.

Red flashing lights mean stop – and wait at least 20 feet behind the bus – because children are getting on or off the school bus. Drivers should stay stopped until the red lights stop flashing, the extended stop-arm is withdrawn, and the bus begins moving.

Even when lights aren’t flashing, watch out for children, particularly in the morning or mid-afternoon, around school arrival and dismissal times.

Some students walk to school or are transported there by private vehicle. Drivers should be mindful of no parking zones that exist for the safety of students.

Drivers should always be alert as they back out of a driveway, or drive through a neighborhood, school zone or bus stop.

We hope everyone will start the school year on a positive note and follow through that way.