INDUSTRY CONNECTIONS
been a problem, Lori Jetha of Seon Design noted that only in recent years has stop-arm camera technology improved enough to work well in this context. “Several of our customers were early innovators of stop- arm camera technology, strapping Seon cameras to the exterior of school buses as far back as 2008,” she recalled. Jetha said a number of factors have fueled the rising interest in stop-arm cameras, including
media attention, advancements in camera technology, and changes in legislation. Chris Bible, shop foreman in the Ft.
Payne (Ala.) City Schools Transportation Department discovered the benefits of partnering with local police since installing a dozen Seon stop-arm cameras. “Alabama doesn’t have a state law yet
around stop-arm cameras, so working with local law enforcement is very important,” he
commented. “Every day a car runs by the stop-arm on one of our buses. Te cameras work great and they’ve helped.” Jackie Coffee, transportation director for
Carroll County Schools in Georgia, said she has seen the number of citations decrease since implementing ATS CrossingGuard cameras. Te system caught almost 100 vio- lations in the first week of school in August, but that number has decreased significantly each week, she noted. “People are getting the word out. Nobody wants these citations, so they tell friends and family members to be more careful,” Coffee said. Meanwhile, the number of vehicles that
illegally pass stopped school buses dropped by 50 percent in Cobb County and 52 percent in Muscogee County, according to ATS, once the Georgia districts put Cross- ingGuard cameras in place. Jody Ryan of Redflex said feedback about
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18 School Transportation News October 2013
its Student Guardian stop-arm camera system has been overwhelmingly positive in eight states. She noted stop-arm enforce- ment brings together various stakeholders, from elected officials and law enforcement to school administrators and bus drivers. “Once a Student Guardian program is implemented, school bus drivers are the most enthusiastic stakeholder. Our tech- nology alleviates them from tracking these violations on their own,” noted Ryan. Rhode Island and Connecticut have passed legislation allowing automated enforcement on school buses, she said. In Rhode Island, 131 citations were issued to motorists for illegally passing buses in 2008, the year before the state passed this legisla- tion. Bus drivers across the state contended that violations were far more frequent, but enforcement proved difficult. Once stop arm enforcement began, she said, 1,686 citations were issued to drivers in six Rhode Island cities last school year. “We are also very proud of our efforts in
Connecticut,” Ryan added. “In 2010, 337 violations were issued for illegally passing school buses. During this past school year, we worked with local law enforcement to issue 1,005 tickets.” Chris Beard of Safety Vision said the
stop-arm camera manufacturer has some 2,500 customers in the school bus market and added that usage is definitely on the rise. “States that have implemented or amend- ed to their existing stop-arm laws to allow photo enforcement are more willing to par- ticipate in our program. Several other states are in the process of amending or improving their existing laws,” he concluded.
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