CHARLES COUNTY, Md. -- School bus violations in the state of Maryland are far more common than one might think.
WUSA9 started looking into how often drivers fail to stop for a school bus that has its stop arm extended, stop sign out and lights flashing after a child was critically injured in a crash in Charles County on Tuesday.
The 7-year-old girl was hit by a truck after stepping off her school bus in Bryantown near Olivers Shop and Leonardtown Roads. Investigators said the bus stopped with its lights flashing and cross arm out when the truck passed and hit the girl.
The driver, who is 35, stayed on scene. The child is in critical, but stable condition as of Wednesday afternoon.
The Maryland State Department of Education (MSDE) said the numbers of school bus violations that happen statewide are high. The MSDE conducts a survey annually that tracks school bus violations for one day in the spring.
All 24 school systems in Maryland participated in the 2018 survey, however, not every school bus driver participated. For example, Montgomery County had 83 percent of buses participating.
WUSA9 has created an interactive map that breaks down the number released by the MSDE in October.
More than 3,800 drivers statewide blew by stopped busses with children getting on or off during the 2018 survey. The highest number of bus stop violations occurred in Montgomery County during with 1,038 violations in one day.
Of the total bus drivers in the county, 83 percent participated in the survey. Baltimore County had the next highest number of violations with 677 reported by bus drivers.
Charles County, where the girl was seriously hurt Tuesday, counted 143 drivers that ran the stop when the bus arm was out and the lights were flashing.
The MSDE says school systems, bus drivers and law enforcement have been raising awareness about school bus violations over the last eight years.
View the informational video created by MSDE by clicking here.
