The Oneida Daily Dispatch (Oneida, NY)
New bill could help make bus rides safer
School Bus Safety Act targets drivers who pass buses, making identifying those who do easier
By making use of cameras, school busses could record vehicles illegally passing and issue a fine.
Drivers are supposed to stop when a school bus has its flashing red lights on. To crack down on those who don’t, the New York State Assembly is looking to take extra steps.
The School Bus Camera Safety Act would allow school buses to use cameras to detect and record vehicles illegally passing or over- taking school busses and receive a fine for doing so.
“This has not passed yet, but it’s with the transportation committee,” said representative Bob Sheuchenko from Assemblyman Bill Magee’s office. Magee, D-121, is a sponsor of the bill.
While the legislation will help crack down on offenders, Operation Safe Stop Day has been another way police and transportation departments have used to drive the point home.
Starting in 1995, agencies across Oneida, Herkimer and Madison counties are on the look out for anyone passing a school bus illegally. Those who do face a fine of around $250.
If the bill passes, handing out those punishments will be easier.
“With the new legislation, offenders will get a letter saying they passed a bus at this time and location and issued a fine,” Oneida City School District Transportation Supervisor Mike Kleonitz said. “If this bill passes, the video
evidence of the car passing will show the red lights on, how long the stop arm was up and take a picture of the driver.”
Originally, school bus drivers would have to make a deposition as to the licence plate and description of the vehicle. But with the plate number, a picture, a time stamp and hard evidence of who was driving the car, the threat of an easy ticket could prove to be a deterrent.
Kleonitz said the side cameras can be installed on any school bus with a cam- era system already built on it, and will not just make use of the new cameras on the side, but the cameras on the windshield as well.
“Not only can we get video of the car going on the side, but we can video everything that’s going on in the front,” Kleonitz said.
With the increase in technology, everything has been afforded to provide a measure of safety to students riding on a school bus, Kleonitz said. Buses are all GPS tracked and record every time the driver opens the door, how long the driver has the door open, how long they have their foot on the brake, the speed of the bus, and any sudden stops.