Lawmakers push for school bus cameras
Measure aims to deter drivers who don’t stop and endanger children
It’s become a common sight on Youtube as well as the occasional evening newscast: motorists who illegally zip past school buses as they pick up or drop off children, despite the stop sign that flips out from the left side of the bus.
Lawmakers say this sort of dangerous moving violation could become less of a problem if a measure allowing cameras to be mounted on the buses becomes law this year.
On Tuesday, the Assembly passed such a measure unanimously. Syracuse Democratic Assemblyman William Magnarelli, who sponsored the bill, called it a deterrent that would “ultimately save students’ lives.”
The Senate has the proposal in its one-house budget plan. “We’re looking to fast-track it,” said Sen. Tim Kennedy, D-buffalo.
Under its provisions, buses would have cameras mounted near or facing the “stop arms,” which swing out when a bus stops to let kids get on or off. The devices could capture the license plate numbers of vehicles that illegally go around the buses.
The school bus industry backs the measure. Citing periodic enforcement campaigns by police, David Christopher of the state Association for Pupil Transportation and Assembly members estimate that motorists pass stopped buses up to 50,000 times per day in New York, including traffic-clogged New York City.
A one-day enforcement crackdown last year yielded 850 tickets. Under current law, drivers can only be ticketed by a police officer who witnesses the act. The fine is $250.
The number of students actually killed by errant drivers ignoring a bus’ stop sign in New York has been low, with one fatality in 2014 and another in 2016 in New York.
But there was a spate of five such deaths in the midwest this year, said Christopher. And dozens of kids are struck and injured each year.
“We’ve had some unbelievable close calls this year,” said Albany County Sheriff Craig Apple, who like many law enforcement officials supports the proposal.
School officials have concerns about implementation. “School districts don’t want to be in the business of issuing school bus fines,” said Michael Borges, executive director of the state Association of School Business Officials.
But Magnarelli’s bill makes municipalities, rather than school districts, the lead players in enforcement.
In the 16 states that allow the on-board cameras, the company providing the devices typically records the traffic. Technicians then forward any footage showing an apparent violation to police. Local police then decide whether to go after the violators.
Others see commercial imperatives at work: Equipment suppliers such as camera companies are looking for new customers since the market for red-light cameras has cooled in recent years, said James Walker of the National Motorists Association, a group that generally opposes more traffic fines. In some cities — including Albany — red-light cameras have failed to meet anticipated fine revenues.
Walker cited National High Safety Administration statistics indicating that more people younger than age 19 were killed by school buses (71) than by passing vehicles (40) between 2005 and 2014.
Christopher said that bus providers are constantly working on training their drivers to improve safety. But the image of cars going around school buses raises plenty of public outrage. One recent clip, which showed a car driving past a bus on a Brooklyn sidewalk, went viral.
Still, both sides agree that overall, riding a bus is the safest way to get to school — especially compared to riding in a car.