You know, for a bunch of people who are quick to point out the rights of cyclists to be on the road even though we slow down traffic that might back up behind us in tight spots, and who work to change laws about when and how a car can legally and safely pass a cyclist, you all are sure vocal in your complaints about being slowed down by kids getting off the bus.

People are people. Kids are slow. Parents like to find out how their kids are doing (or maybe there's a more legitimate purpose for the talking--maybe their kid has been bullied on the bus and they need to talk to the driver about that, or maybe the kid left their coat on the bus the day before and they want to know if it was found, or maybe they are letting the driver know that the kid has a doctor's appointment the next day so won't need to be picked up in the morning). Personally my kid is slow getting off the bus because he's autistic and not always with it and doesn't do well with transitions, so getting on and off the bus involves cajoling (on our part) and head banging (on his part).

I'm VERY glad that there are all of these safety checks in place for kids getting on and off the bus (o.k., checking under the wheels with a flashlight seems like overkill)--one of my best friends in 4th grade was hit by a driver passing a school bus. He wasn't killed, but he was really messed up and missed months of fourth grade.

So you're inconvenienced for a few minutes when you're stuck behind a bus. If you don't like it, find another route, or don't go out on the road at the time of day when you know the busses are running, or leave a few minutes earlier. And remind yourself that if the busses weren't running, there would be another 30 or 50 cars per missing bus out on the road transporting the kids to and from school. Does that sound preferable?