LAKELAND – Incidents involving motorists illegally passing school busses, commonly referred to as ‘flybys’ continue to be an issue across the Northern Lights Public Schools (NLPS) area.
According to Nicole Garner, the communications and public relations manager for NLPS, on average, the school division, which has 28 schools and around 6,000 students across the Lakeland region, hears reports of about three flybys per week.
However, when the weather is nice in the fall and spring, she added, that usually increases to five times a week.
When these incidences do occur, bus drivers report them to the school division’s transportation department. While not every bus in the NLPS fleet is equipped with cameras, when an incident is recorded, it is reported to the RCMP or community peace officers (CPOs).
“We report them even if we are able to see a plate or not. Even if a charge can't be laid, reporting is helpful so hot spots can be identified and monitored,” Garner said.
Safety is a primary focus for the school division. According to Garner, NLPS has had numerous near misses where vehicles have passed a bus and came close to hitting a student.
The school division’s drivers, she said, are very vigilant, and have prevented potentially serious incidents by warning students when vehicles are passing illegally.
“We have had vehicles pass buses when students are just about to step out from in front of the bus to cross the street, and one where a vehicle passed on the right-hand side on the shoulder when the bus was stopped,” she said.
According to John Kokotilo, general manager of Lac La Biche County Protective Services, while there have been reports of flybys in the Lac La Biche region since the start of the 2025-26 school year, they have been reduced significantly.
Since September, Kokotilo explained, Lac La Biche County community peace officers have been out during the times of the day when students are being picked up on the bus and dropped off in the afternoons.
This enforcement measure, in turn, has helped spread the message to the public.
“We’ve done a very proactive back to school campaign and stuff, so they’ve dropped off dramatically as opposed to at the beginning of the year,” he stated.
People can become complacent over the summer break, Kokotilo said, and when school returns in the fall, they forget to pay attention when buses are on the roads.
“That’s why we really are very proactive in the prevention of these things and doing education.
