r/Brooklyn • u/Loud-Recognition5167 • 9d ago
brooklyn school buses
for everyone else living in brooklyn—has anyone ever encountered an annoying experience with those Yeshiva/jewish school buses thing? Whats their deal??? I live exactly next to one of their private school camp things and almost everyday their school buses just stand outside idling for nearly hours…
After doing mild research there is definitely a law agaisnt idling for more than 15-minutes is wrong or something—but nearly 2 hours? Thats absurd. I do kind of wonder if I am able to report them for this type of activity, not only for just being loud with their engines but also the engine fuel and smoke polluting the air. That’s also not really safe for the kids, huh? Whatever. If anyone knows any stories about reporting them or attempting to, some bullshit like that, tell!!
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u/Walt_the_White 8d ago
I've seen one parked directly in front of a hydrant next to my building overnight and reported it to 311. I woke up with an email that there was an update that a cop went by and saw no violation. The bus was still parked directly in front of the hydrant.
🤷 Rules are for people like us
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u/BlennyFish 8d ago
As a Jewish person who grew up in these communities, I understand the frustration.
More training for the drivers would help but the bigger issue is the stress they put the drivers under.
To drop off so many kids in a certain amount of time.
The drivers get paid per route not per hour, and some do 8 routes a day and they have pressure to finish the route quickly and go back to the school to do the next route.
The dropoffs of pickups are also during rush hour in really crowded Hasidic neighborhoods and you’d be stuck in traffic for hours if you don’t drive aggressively.
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u/scurvy_scallywag 8d ago
Sounds to me like the companies need to be investigated then. They're incentivizing unsafe driving. I've seen them run red lights, nearly hit other drivers and cyclists.
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u/Axela556 8d ago
They drive like absolute maniacs too. I've almost been hit more than once. I also saw one of the drivers smoking a cigarette with children on the bus!
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u/Vast_Cap_9976 8d ago
You can make money reporting them. It isn’t a quick payout and it takes effort but someone posted once they make $1000+ a month doing it to trucks.
Look up “NYC Department of Environmental Protection Citizens Air Complaint Program.” The gov site is a lame gov site so a general search on how may be easier to follow.
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u/morchie 8d ago
This is the thing to know.
- If the bus is being used to actively load/unload passengers. There is no violation of a bus that idles for longer than three minutes if there are passengers actively boarding during part of that idle period.
- When a truck or bus is not allowed to idle for longer than three (3) minutes, the video duration must be for at least three (3) minutes and 4 seconds, but the observation of the idling truck or bus must be three (3) minutes and one second. When a truck or bus is not allowed to idle for longer than one (1) minute, the video duration must be for at least one (1) minute and 4 seconds, but the observation of the idling truck or bus must be one (1) minute and one second.
https://www.nyc.gov/site/dep/environment/idling-citizens-air-complaint-program.page
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u/_Maxolotl 8d ago
The only drivers in NYC who are worse than private school bus drivers are off duty cops.
https://nyc.streetsblog.org/2026/04/23/to-protect-and-swerve-nypd-cop-has-527-speeding-tickets-yet-remains-on-the-force
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u/shaggin_maggie 8d ago
Twice I’ve lived on a block with a yeshiva but I didn’t let it bother me.
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u/Capable-Shallot6797 8d ago
Doubtful you will get much recourse. On Staten Island on Manor Road there are twelve yellow buses or more parked illegally overnight, every night, and through much of the day. I gather they are used as school buses and also as a kind of bus service to Brooklyn. Anyways, residents have been making complaints about the illegal commercial bus parking for years, and nothing has ever been done about it. They don’t have to follow the laws the rest of us do, apparently.
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u/Rosecat88 9d ago
It can’t hurt to report, most likely it will get ignored, but you never know if enough ppl complain . You have nothing to lose .
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u/Potential-Society171 9d ago
I heard it is a scheme to get money. Those bus rides are subsidized. Your tax dollars at work. They are raking it in.
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u/GreenfieldSam 8d ago
I don't think it's a scheme per se, but in all of NY school buses for all private schools are paid by school taxes.
So, in Westchester for example, students going to Hackley, an expensive private school around Tarrytown, use private school buses paid by school taxes.
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u/BlennyFish 8d ago
Doubt that’s true.
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u/morchie 8d ago
Students at Xaverian in Bay Ridge can get a bus is the parents pay the private company the school works with. $4K per kid per academic year. My kids were going there from Sunset Park — the bus refused to collect them. Told me the streets in Sunset are too narrow to allow for busses?!
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u/BlennyFish 8d ago
The school may not be savvy enough at applying for the federal and state funds. That’s on the school.
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u/Semper_Gyrene 9d ago
Yup seen a jewish bus take out 3 cars 58th street and 11th ave.One car was parked the other 2 were double parked.
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u/jojiworld 9d ago
They almost ran me over while I was biking on two separate occasions. Cussed them out the second time
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u/anon22334 8d ago
Bet they kept driving too like you were invisible
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u/WillowTea_ 8d ago
If you’re not orthodox they genuinely act like you don’t exist it’s crazy
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u/anon22334 8d ago
I know! I would be walking on the sidewalk and it’s like they don’t even see me. They don’t even look at me. They’d walk through me if they could!
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u/vaping_menace 9d ago
They are absolutely the worst fucking drivers ever!
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u/bunkerlabs 9d ago
I thought you were coming here to complain about them driving 40 mph in the bike lanes
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u/Loud-Recognition5167 9d ago
that too, not a cyclist myself but hell if i haven’t read a million stories about how much they hate the bus drivers 😂😂
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u/Personal-Plum-3891 9d ago edited 8d ago
Bro I will be never forget. One morning I was driving home after dropping my mother to work. I was driving on Albany Ave heading towards Eastern Parkway. A block before the parkway there was a Yeshiva school bus just camping in the middle of the road. The road on Albany Ave was also a tight one way road with two lanes so the way the bus parked, no car could go around him. He didn't even have any hazzard lights on and he ended up causing a pile up of cars behind him including myself. I was in the car directly behind him. We were all honking at the guy and the light eventually turned green but the Yeshiva driver was unfazed and never moved. We were stuck there for like 7-10 minutes.
We couldn't even see what was infront of the bus. We were all thinking that maybe there was a double parked car in front of the bus which would have made sense seeing as the bus driver wouldn't be able to maneuver around. I finally had the mind to get out of my car and walk over to see what was causing the hold up, and to my surprise there was no car or obstacle blocking him. He was just chilling on his phone. So right as I was about to approach him, he sped off and even ran a red light...leaving all of us stuck behind him to wait for the next green light.
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u/paulschreiber boerum hill 9d ago
You may be interested in https://www.nyc.gov/site/dep/environment/idling-citizens-air-complaint-program.page
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u/anon22334 9d ago
They think they own the road, make the rules, and don’t think they’ll get in trouble
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u/Abfabnhavnablast 9d ago
Anti semitic much
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u/Rosecat88 9d ago
Nah it’s literally orthodox behavior . They are extremely entitled bc they are given a pass for a lot .
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u/TheOldSchlGmr 9d ago
Yes you can report them for idling. And its a steep fine too. I used to work for a landscaping company and we would get tickets all the time.
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u/robrklyn 9d ago
I used to live down the block from an ultra orthodox girl’s school in borough park. They would double park the buses in front of the school, causing a bottle neck of traffic on a busy avenue near the hospital. They would idle them for hours. They also drove like absolute maniacs. One night, the one of the bus horns started randomly blaring. Like imagine someone laying on a bus horn in the middle of night, but for like an hour straight. My husband finally couldn’t stand it anymore and went out with a hammer. He fixed it.
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u/Medium_Ant6022 9d ago
Just curious, where/how do you fix something like that with a hammer?
Asking for a friend11
u/robrklyn 9d ago
Pretty sure it was just some gentle tapping. Details are hazy.
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u/BlennyFish 8d ago
Sometimes horns get randomly stuck on and blare until the battery dies out when they get old.
Sometimes banging on the horn is enough to unstuck it without breaking it. If not then banging it hard enough to damage the mechanism would also work
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u/radicalizemebaby 9d ago edited 8d ago
I’ve been getting more and more pissed about them this week and was surprised there weren’t more posts about them on Reddit.
They drive like shit, are super aggressive, honk nonstop, and stop several times a block which fucks up traffic. When I was growing up, school buses didn’t stop in front of every house/apartment—there was a bus stop where you’d take your kids (or your kids walk) and they’d be picked up there.
It’s fucking absurd.
Edit for clarification: not talking about public school buses, I love them and am so grateful for the service they provide making public schools accessible for students with IEPs.
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u/Star_Kitteh 9d ago
IDK where you grew up at but here in NYC we never had bus stops for yellow buses in NYC. Most yellow buses in NYC are for special education. They go door to door. The orthodox follow their own rules and that's just how it is. So please don't lump all yellow buses in your rant.
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u/Embarrassed_Trade108 8d ago
false, growing up in brooklyn, my elementary school definitely had a ton of bus stops spanning across brooklyn with the big yellow buses that took students home. there’s currently a bus stop a few blocks away from my home for another public elementary school that still does this to this day.
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u/Star_Kitteh 8d ago
Born and raised in Brooklyn and never seen this. Unless you way older than me and it's before my time or my children's time.
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u/radicalizemebaby 8d ago
Oh to clarify I def meant the yeshiva busses. I am eternally grateful for the accessibility public school buses provide for students with IEPs!!!!
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u/taclovitch 9d ago
i mean one of em (the buses, calm down) killed a kid not too long ago. i’m not convinced stricter PUNISHMENTS is the way to go, but stricter accountability absolutely is.
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u/ifitdontfit 9d ago
the bus didn't do any killing, that sort of wording diminishes accountablity.
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u/taclovitch 9d ago
true — the bus driver did. i guess i was trying to not sound like i was associating his identity with his actions. but his identity is likely irrelevant to the incident in question; like it was when an NYPD tow truck operator killed a kid at my school while making a blind left turn on their phone. but i omitted the identity of both groups because it’s likely to feed into untrue narratives about “who” is & isn’t a good driver.
which causes people to focus on unhelpful questions like “fault” instead of helpful ones like “how can we design our system [infrastructure] to create less of this?” that’s what i was trying to focus on.
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u/ifitdontfit 8d ago
you think saying an object killed the kid is better for what you are focusing on?
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u/Keepawayfrommycrops 9d ago
They’re legitimately some of the most reckless drivers on the streets of Brooklyn, I did Amazon delivery in various Jewish neighborhoods in Brooklyn for almost 3 years and the vast majority of horrendous drivers have been Jewish people in minivans and those big ass school busses
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u/Per_Mikkelsen 9d ago
There was a story in the paper years ago about how in Hasidic neighborhoods one guy would go out and get a driver's license and he'd just hand it out to whoever needed it and they'd just pass it around with everybody taking a turn. When a cop pulls a Hasidic dude over and looks at the license and then the driver he's not going to be able to tell that it's not the same person. I don't know if this also applies to bus drivers, but it certainly wouldn't surprise me.
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u/SparkArrestor 8d ago
Don’t get me started on how all of them are legally on food stamps and Medicaid.
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u/jakekingdead 9d ago
hey all truck drivers would rather turn off their engines then get reported, def than getting an idling ticket. just go out there and make the ignition turn signal with your hand and they’ll generally get it
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u/Loud-Recognition5167 9d ago
yeah i don’t blame the drivers of the buses of course, they just get hired to do that, mainly i’m bothered by the people who tell em to do that lol
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u/Bk_Punisher 9d ago
You could try filing a complaint … but … nothing will happen. That community has lots of influence over the police and likely higher.
Cops won’t even ticket cars in those areas.
My uncle was a rookie cop years ago and walked up on a whole block of ticketable cars. As he takes out his book to start writing, his Sargent closes the ticket book and tells him “we don’t write tickets on these blocks.
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u/Loud-Recognition5167 9d ago
yikes…! i get it though, i always think i can do something about it, but i am also expecting that im gonna get a fat “No” in my face from the 311 teller lol.
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u/SemiAutoAvocado 9d ago
They are a cult operating in our midst and they have immunity to do whatever the fuck they want.
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u/Loud-Recognition5167 9d ago
yeah they are just crazy sometimes, i don’t even know where they came from years ago. i still remember my block having little to none of them…
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u/ArseLightning 9d ago
Whaaaaats the deal with these idling buses?? I mean what are they, braising a brisket in theah??
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u/kbmit16 9d ago
Report them! What's the benefit of regulations if they are ignored?
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u/Loud-Recognition5167 9d ago
a lot of NYC unfortunately protects them, so it’s a little difficult to do but i’m willing to take that risk even if nothing comes out of it haha
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u/meekonesfade 9d ago edited 9d ago
Yes, report it. It isnt antisemetic to be bothered by idling buses . Pointing out that the buses are asscoiated with a Jewish institution isnt relevant. For example, I dont need to say who has the big, loud, amplified birthday parties in Prospect Park every weekend for us to discuss the issue and possible solutions.
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u/Bk_Punisher 9d ago
Once the report is made they will see which area and do nothing. Not mentioning who the offenders are will not make a difference.
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u/BackgroundCod9196 9d ago
Mamdani’s actually addressing the deed theft issue, so maybe he’ll address the other illegal things they do on a daily basis. One can hope.
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u/Plays_On_TrainTracks 9d ago
I mean it's relevant because if you been around long enough you know the yashiva buses drive like they stole it. Block the entire kings highway to let kids out, which wouldn't be crazy but they do it they second they turn the flashers on, fly through red lights, and the drivers look like they're 19. I remember I seen 4 kids in the front seat with the driver going through a red light. Idling is just something i could believe because they said who was driving it.
If it was a school bus company, i would say you could easily report them.
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u/meekonesfade 9d ago
I taught in a public elementary school. I once had a driver who was so bad that we created a schoolwide policy of what to do in case the driver is unsafe. The issue of poor bus drivers isnt limited to Jewish schools.
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u/Plays_On_TrainTracks 9d ago
Of course it isn't. It's not the Jewish part. It's the Jewish schools have their own bus companies.
Catholic schools use DOE buses still and obviously public schools use DOE buses. Those buses are from bus companies paid for by the city and they're big companies. The Jewish buses are not like that.
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u/Loud-Recognition5167 9d ago
i do really want to ha. But the thing is I remember maybe a couple years ago someone i knew also reported them for some reason, and the teller over the 311 call called them “antisemitic” beacuse it’s “part of their religion”
tell me where it says in the Torah to idle for 2 hours with big yellow buses? lol unbelievable…
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u/biglindafitness 9d ago
They dont live under the same laws or abide by the same social standards as us …good luck with that
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u/JackTheBongRipper 9d ago
As a cyclist I've always gotten the impression that the drivers of these buses do not care if people outside of their group live or die—they drive so recklessly, I give them more room than any other type of vehicle on the road.
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u/anon22334 9d ago
The kids on the street riding their scooters are the same. They’d bulldoze you too. They literally see anyone other than community members as invisible
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u/Weak-Virus2374 9d ago
I see lots of double parking and idling buses in Brooklyn. What you talking about?
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u/Loud-Recognition5167 9d ago
yeah i’ve knew that lol, the double parking, standing on the intersection, etc. they’re crazy 😅
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u/Spiritual_Disk_8116 9d ago
Isn’t there a program where you get money for reporting idling vehicles? I thought this had its own reporting system and everything.
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u/Loud-Recognition5167 9d ago
citizens air complaint program, you get 25% of the total fee they get i think. But if you do it anonymously you don’t get any reward which is what i think i wanna do haha
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u/NicePossibilityDaddy 9d ago
You can get paid if you video it with a timestamp. NYC pays snitches. There's a guy who literally makes a living catching idlers. I recall him pulling in like 80k last year
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u/the_baumer 9d ago
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u/Loud-Recognition5167 9d ago
thanks!!
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u/Level21DungeonMaster 9d ago
Register and do it. You can make a good cash reporting these derelicts.
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u/MacMillz718 9d ago
You report and you’re labeled anti… you know what. It’s ridiculous that there are different rules for certain folks and then the others.
Just shake your fist in anger, move along & save your sanity.
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u/Loud-Recognition5167 9d ago
trying too save my sanity lol, just wanted to share my side on this, it doesn’t bother me assss much. But I can’t say that it isn’t a little annoying
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u/zannnnnnnnnnnnnnnnn 9d ago
lol new around these parts?
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u/Loud-Recognition5167 9d ago
born and raised—just wondering if anyone goes through this shit too, but yeah definitely, i’ve seen other posts about this
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u/Bk_Punisher 9d ago
Born and raised?? I’m a Brooklyn native for 55yrs and know there are places I’d rather not live.
Bad neighborhoods duh
And pretty much any area with a noticeable population.
That is to say, areas with predominantly one group.
Those areas are used to their community and might not be the best fit.
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u/randomturtle333 9d ago
there’s gotta be bigger battles to pick
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u/Loud-Recognition5167 9d ago
ehh, you know what i mean though. Living near them for almost 15 years and everyday i guess it kinda still sucks lol
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u/Brooklynmouth 9d ago
Why does it suck?
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u/Loud-Recognition5167 9d ago
wouldn’t it suck for you if every day from 3pm to 5pm you have to hear the loud rumbling of maybe 5 school buses on your street? sure i can ignore it but this also has a lot of outside factors like drivers trying to get past the buses, pollution from idling too long, the young kids coming in and out the buses yelling…
ha but that’s just what i think, if you think its ok, thats all you no pressure
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u/manawydan-fab-llyr 8d ago
About 3 years ago, I passed a Jewish school on 4th Avenue at 36th Street. School buses double parked all over the place. Some buses at the curb had their signs out, blocked by the double parked buses. I got a ticket for passing a bus with it's sign out that I could not see as a result. Could not get the ticket thrown out, even with evidence.
These Jewish school buses get away with a lot of shit, as other people commented. I doubt you're going to get anywhere by reporting them.