SAN ANTONIO – The first day of school can be a lot of fun and exciting for students, and safety may be the last thing on their minds.
That's why school bus drivers said students and motorists need to watch out for each other.
The latest National Highway Traffic Safety Administration numbers show an average of 11 children die each year walking around a school bus. More are injured.
School bus drivers have their own stories of close calls, which they said are caused mostly due to students or drivers not paying attention.
Harlandale Independent School District bus driver Beatrice Castro said after more than two decades of experience, she sees the same mistakes every year.
"When they run in front of the bus, and like other times when they see the bus coming, they just run, right? You know. They don't wait until it stops. So, a lot of that," Castro said. "We've tried to train our kids, where when they see the bus coming up for them, you know, be at the stop before we get there. They're going to get hit eventually, you know, because they're not paying attention. They just take off."
Castro said she's seen a school bus rider get hit by a car.
"I had my lights on and everything, and the little girl was going to get on the bus. And so the lady was at a stop sign, but she didn't (stop) for whatever reason," she said. "She saw the bus, but she didn't see the girl coming, so when she took off, she hit the girl and she fell on the hood. She was OK, though. Obviously the lady wasn't paying attention."
Castro said her assistant who helps the children cross the street has barely missed getting hit twice. Even when he is crossing the children, cars won't stop.
NHTSA numbers show 70 percent of school bus-related fatalities happen to commuters inside a vehicle hit by a bus.
Still, Castro said drivers need to be aware.
"Be patient, be patient," Castro said.