Which has right of way: a funeral procession or a stopped school bus?

Question

In Massachusetts, I recently witnessed a funeral procession going one way on a road. In the other direction on the road was a school bus that stopped opposite the middle of the funeral procession and put out its stop sign (which normally requires all traffic in both directions to stop). In this situation, are the remaining cars in funeral procession required to stop?

The laws on funeral processions are here: https://malegislature.gov/Laws/GeneralLaws/PartI/TitleXIV/Chapter85/Section14A.

The most relevant bits are the following:

(c)(1) Except as provided in paragraph (4) of this subsection, pedestrians and operators of all vehicles shall yield the right-of-way to any vehicle which is part of a funeral procession being led by a funeral escort vehicle or a funeral lead vehicle.

(4) A funeral procession shall have the right-of-way at intersections regardless of traffic control devices subject to the following conditions and exceptions:

(i) operators of vehicles in a funeral procession shall yield the right-of-way to an approaching emergency vehicle emitting an audible siren or flashing emergency lights;

(ii) operators of vehicles in a funeral procession shall yield the right-of-way when directed to do so by law enforcement personnel; and

(iii) operators of vehicles in a funeral procession must exercise due care when participating in a funeral procession.

Meanwhile, the laws on school buses are here: https://malegislature.gov/Laws/GeneralLaws/PartI/TitleXIV/Chapter90/section14

The most relevant bit is the following:

When approaching a vehicle which displays a sign bearing the words ''SCHOOL BUS'' and which is equipped with front and rear alternating flashing red signal lamps which are flashing, as provided in section seven B, and which has been stopped to allow pupils to alight from or board the same, a person operating a motor vehicle or trackless trolley shall, except when approaching from the opposite direction on a divided highway, bring his vehicle or trackless trolley to a full stop before reaching said school bus and shall not thereafter proceed until the warning signals are deactivated, unless directed to the contrary by a police officer duly authorized to control the movement of traffic.

It seems like the funeral procession clearly has the right of way if it has a police escort, but I'm not sure what happens if it doesn't.

Answer 1

I think clause 4(iii) of the funeral procession law should apply. Not stopping for a school bus is not exercising due care, since they could easily injure one of the school children.

However, perhaps the funeral procession law could be interpreted as meaning that the schoolbus must yield to the procession, so the driver shouldn't open its door and turn on the warning lights until after the procession has passed by.

There doesn't really seem to be any obvious precedence level. So in practice, I think it would just be whichever arrives first. If the bus is already stopped and the procession arrives, the procession should stop until all the children are safe. On the other hand, if there's already a procession on the road, and the schoolbus arrives at the stop, it should yield to the procession before opening the door.

In the latter case, the bus driver could use this as a teachable moment. While they're waiting, he can explain to the children what a funeral procession is and why we give them deference. Many children will probably never have seen one before.