All 55 district buses will be armed with active cameras by Sept. 30
It seems no matter how much effort is put into reminding local drivers to be safe around school buses (see our previous coverage on the local police efforts to do so here), there are always going to be a few “bad apples.”
According to a study by the Unified Judicial System of Pennsylvania, who took a look at school zone traffic violations over the past five years, Montgomery County is one of the worst in the state. Montco has the highest (aka the worst) county in Pennsylvania when it comes to school zone infractions, with 33% of citations being school zone- and school bus-related.
The county also makes up 14% of all failure to stop/overtaking a school bus violations in the state, ranked second to only Pittsburgh-based Allegheny County.
In a proactive effort to combat reckless driving behavior around school buses, Wissahickon School District (WSD) has decided to join the effort to reduce these violations.
Partnering with our local law enforcement and BusPatrol, WSD is slated to launch a new school bus safety enforcement program at the month’s end.
“As part of the safety initiative, the entire fleet of 55 buses will be outfitted with photo enforcement technology to detect the license plates of vehicles that fail to stop for school buses, putting children at risk,” said Kristen Rawlings, communications coordinator for the district. “The video evidence is shared with local law enforcement for review before a notice of violation is issued.”
The new program will go live on Sept. 30, after the district has had time to educate area drivers, school families, and local residents. WSD has begun distributing an “education and public awareness campaign” already.
“The campaign seeks to educate motorists and learner drivers about school bus safety laws and teach school children how to get on and off the bus as safely as possible,” said Rawlings. Teaching both drivers of cars, and students exiting buses, gives the district a multifaceted approach toward increasing safety.
While drivers may be in a rush to get to work, or simply feel an overall need to “hurry” through their drive, there is never a time when violating strict bus safety laws is acceptable.
“Drivers passing a stopped school bus put children at risk of injury,” said WSD Business Administrator Tim Bricker. “With this new bus safety technology and partnership to enforce the laws, we hope to eliminate this dangerous behavior in Wissahickon School District and protect our students as they travel to and from school.”
According to Rawlings, each school year, school buses are illegally passed an estimated 43.5 million times nationwide, putting students at risk. In Pennsylvania alone, state authorities reported nearly 200 violations in a single school day during Operation Safe Stop 2023, translating to approximately 31,500 violations over a typical 180-day school year.
Following last year’s OSS23 program, Corporal Zeina Black, Permits and Bus Safety Unit Supervisor with the Pennsylvania State Police said
"Drivers might consider the steep penalties if convicted of disobeying Pennsylvania's School Bus Stopping Law - a $250 fine, five points on your driving record and a 60-day license suspension,” said Black. “The fine increases to $300 if someone is caught by a stop arm camera.”
Black said that if the violation punishments weren’t enough, it is truly the devastating real-life consequences that should matter most.
“But even worse than these penalties, a tragedy could occur if either a driver or a student is not paying attention to their surroundings," she said.
Justin Meyers, President and Chief Innovation Officer at BusPatrol, said that the safety initiative has been proven to make roads safer.
“In other communities, the use of this technology has reduced instances of motorists recklessly disregarding school bus stop signs by over 40%,” said Meyers. “This significant reduction demonstrates how our program effectively changes behavior and contributes to safer roadways. We look forward to working with Wissahickon School District to make roads safer for all students.”
As stated by the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation, motorists must stop at least 10 feet away from school buses with red lights flashing and stop-arm extended. The penalty for a first-time violation is $300.
To learn more about the Wissahickon School District bus safety program, go to wsdweb.org/departments/transportation/stop-for-the-bus.
